Kosta Eleftheriou believed that Apple was close to a deal in January 2019. This is what his lawsuit claims. Apple's head of keyboards adored his FlickType keyboard application for the Apple Watch and gushed about how many mistakes it made. Apple should buy it from you, the man exclaimed. A senior engineer also gushed about it.
Eleftheriou received an Apple message that evening. It was not what he expected. The company seemed to have decided that Apple Watch keyboards were not allowed. This was apparently in just one afternoon. The app is specifically a keyboard for Apple Watch. Apple stated that your app will not be available for sale in the App Store.
Apple's swipe keyboard app was revealed alongside the Apple Watch Series 7 on Tuesday.
Sherlocked Eleftheriou.
Sherlocked
He's not the only one. Apple has always looked to its app developers for ideas and copied them, integrating them into its operating systems free of charge. It is called Sherlocking because Apple copied many features from the third-party Watson app to its Sherlock desktop search engine in 2002. Here are some other examples.
This isn't the typical case where developers should have access to their income. Users also deserve the functionality free of charge, and not because Apples make users pay to buy a new Watch. Eleftheriou was made an enemy by Apple two years ago when they blocked his app and continued to fight with him over updates. He has earned a reputation for being a scam-hunter and is now one of Apple's most vocal critics. He repeatedly and effectively points out how Apple does not prevent frauds that bilk users of large sums of cash.
He filed a lawsuit against Apple in March over the app. He claimed that Apple continued to refuse and hold up his Apple Watch keyboard for several months to force him to buy it cheaply. The complaint states that Apple believed Plaintiff would give up and simply sell its app to Apple at a discounted price.
Here's where you might be wondering: Did Apple ban all keyboard apps for the Apple Watch in 2019? Or Did Eleftheriou tweet the rejection message and say "See you in court" a few days ago?
Although the timelines are a bit confusing, it is true.
Yes, Eleftheriou filed his lawsuit nearly six months before the Apple Watch Series 7 launch. The suit is not yet clear, and Eleftheriou won't reveal the impact of Sherlocking. His lawyers advise him not to tell journalists too much.
Let's unravel the timeline
Eleftheriou believes that Apple did not reject all Apple Watch keyboard apps in 2019. Shift Keyboard was already available in February 2019 and even partner apps with Eleftherious keyboard tech (the complaints names Nano for Reddit and Chirp on Twitter and Lens for Instagram respectively) made it through.
Apple tells The Verge that it has changed its mind over the years. Apple initially thought it wasn't appropriate for a keyboard on the Apple Watch's small screen. However, it changed its mind in 2019 when it realized the potential. Since then, Apple has encouraged Apple Watch keyboards. The company admits that Eleftherious was removed accidentally and says it has quickly rectified the problem.
Eleftheriou disagrees with that assertion, stating that it took over a year of appeals before his keyboard was reinstated to the store. He tells me that I was discussing with them a FlickType acquisition from [January 2019]. Onwards. Apple at first made it appear that those appeals had failed. Your app was evaluated by the App Review Board and rejected feedback was deemed valid. Eleftheriou, in a May 2019 message, stated that appeals are final.
According to the complaint, he claims that the Apple Watch keyboard extension wasn't approved until January 2020, one year after the surprise takedown. FlickType for Apple Watch finally arrived, it was the top-selling paid app in the store and pulled in $130,000 its first month. It was also named one of Apple's top paid apps in 2020. He uses this as a reason he feels he has been financially hurt by the lawsuit.
He doesn't seem to be too concerned about his finances at the moment. He says that FlickType's income is likely to disappear as the functionality will be integrated into the site. He says that although I don't have a job, this doesn't pose a major financial problem for him. I wonder if he was able to make a lot of money selling his keyboard company Fleksy, which he sold to Pinterest five years ago. (Microsoft purchased SwiftKey keyboard app for $250 million a few months prior.
FlickType is a hobby for Eleftheriou, but his other hobby of hunting down scam apps, and calling out the App Shop's failures, stems from this whole mess. After his own app was blocked by App Review, he became fed up with watching other apps succeed, including scams.
Eleftheriou, a popular iPhone keyboard extension for blind users, announced his resignation last month. He blamed Apple's App Review team for a recent misinterpretation of his app (and VoiceOver screen reader technology by the company) as being supposed to work.
We announce today the end of our award-winning iPhone keyboards for blind users.
Apple has been a constant obstacle in our quest to create an app that improves people's lives for many years. We can no longer bear their abuse. pic.twitter.com/cH1HCQzeP1 FlickType Watch Keyboard (@FlickType) August 16, 2021
Already, our rejection history spans over FOURTY pages. It is filled with repeated, unreasonable, and unwarranted rejections that frustrate and delay end-users, rather than bringing them benefits. App Review is not only time-consuming. He also wrote that it can be very emotionally draining.
Apple basically tells me that this was also a mistake. Apple claims it now understands that the keyboard conforms to its guidelines. It has repeated this to Eleftheriou numerous times and encouraged him to submit the application again. Apple would prefer that Eleftheriou doesn't take it.
Eleftheriou claims he's had enough. Here's his statement:
When Apple fixes the broken third-party keyboard APIs for iOS, I will be thrilled to bring back FlickType Keyboard. This allows developers to compete with Apple's keyboard. It is also necessary that all reviewers have basic VoiceOver training. We keep getting rejected because reviewers don't know how to use VoiceOver. I have already spent thousands of hours creating my app, addressing keyboard API issues, and dealing with app reviews. So, I am eager to see Apple's improvements. When enough progress is made, I will resubmit the FlickType VoiceOver keyboard. I also want Apple to make it possible for developers to view their rejection history. Apple hides this information from developers, and refuses to give it on request. It is unacceptable that Apple sends us messages of rejection that disappear quickly and we have no way to access them again.
He is particularly upset at Apple's keyboard, which doesn't have to use its own APIs. And how these APIs lack features that Apple has publicly promised for years.
Eleftheriou, technically, is what made the iPhone keyboard extension disappear. Not Apple. It is still available in the current version of the store. He submitted a revised version, which removes the extension. This is currently pending with Apples App Review.
Eleftheriou will now take his keyboard home and return to Greece.
