Over the fast ten days I have been dealing, or rather, trying to deal with Google. It is exasperating. And this is my story:
Google send me a communication that: Your app, BatiBleki, com.batibleki, has been removed from Google Play because you have not made a child-directed declaration. Google Play developers are required to declare in the Play Console whether their app is primarily directed to children under the age of 13 as defined by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
Then google got threatening:
This app won’t be available to users until you submit a compliant update. If approved, your app will again be available with all installs, ratings, and reviews intact.
Action required: Declare whether your app is primarily child-directed.
Sounded easy enough, god forbid a child would attempt to read my stuff, but I get it, kids should not be able to view everything on line.
My app developer who lives in India and requires constant PayPal cash injections, also lives in a different time zone as you know. It took a few days of back and forth but he certified by app off limit for kids.
But Google still wasn’t happy.
I see you have declared that your app is not primarily child directed, he/she wrote, however, your app still contains inappropriate image that is not suitable for general audience as mentioned in the previous email.
Apparently, my icon shows cleavage, tfu…tfu…tfu…and a phallic pen. And my breasts are not sufficiently covered, my shirt too tight. Yes we’re talking about the icon, the caricature.
Then Google went on: “Your app violates blabla policy. We don’t allow apps with misleading, irrelevant, excessive, or inappropriate blabla, which include the app’s description, title, icon, screenshots, and promotional images.
Bottomline: your app icon and feature graphic currently contains real-life subject portrayed with clothing that provides minimal coverage of breasts.
Please remove all the inappropriate images from your listing.
Google must be operating out of Saudi Arabia or Iran. But go talk to the wall. The computer just spits out one-response-fits-all communications and my icon gotta go!
I have a new one, no cleavage, no tight shirt, no machine-gun pen.
