Removal of MyTunes Pro from the Google Play Store

[whitestarlogic]

I regret to inform everyone that MyTunes Pro has been removed from the Google Play store. After 2 years of being available in the app store, this news came as a bit of a shock to me. About a month ago, I received an email from Google stating that the app had been flagged for policy violations and would be removed unless it was brought into compliance. They did not offer any specifics on exactly what the complaint was, the email just vaguely referred to a couple sections of the content policy. I replied, requesting more information and received the following reply from the Google Play Team:

"Some brands and organizations are very protective of their Intellectual Property and how it is used. Your app contains images that you do not appear to have permission to use. (e.g.  Journey's Album cover for 'Escape' and so on) If you have obtained the rights to distribute these images, please provide the supporting documentation for our review or modify your apps before publishing."

My listings in the store did use real album cover images (Journey's Escape and Def Leppard's Hysteria), so I updated the listings to remove them and replaced the images with generic artwork I created myself. I thought the issue was settled. However, a few days ago I received notification from Google that MyTunes Pro had been removed from the store. Once again, no specific reason was given. I appealed, explaining that I had removed the copyrighted album covers, but was told the decision was final and no additional information would be given.

They did say that I have the option of modifying the app and re-publishing it under a different listing, however, without knowing the exact nature of the complaint, it's hard to know if it would just end up being removed again.

In the meantime, if you have MyTunes Pro installed, it should continue to work, with the added benefit that it will now be ad free. However, I was about to release an updated version which fixed several long standing bugs and updated the UI to work better with newer versions of Android. Due to the removal, I will be unable to issue the update.

If I can sort out exactly what changes need to be made, I will issue the updated version under a new listing. I will post here when that app becomes available. Sorry for any inconvenience this may cause anyone.

- Whitestarlogic