Apple has rejected an iOS application that would have allowed users to buy and read e-books bought from the Sony Reader Store, according to a new report. Citing Steve Haber, president of Sony’s digital reading division, the New York Times reports that Apple told Sony that from now on, all in-app purchases would have to go through Apple.
The report specifically states that not only can companies not sell content from other stores within their apps—a policy that has long been in place—but that users could not be allowed to access purchases made outside the App Store, a change that could result in the removal of Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes & Noble’s Nook apps, among others. “It’s the opposite of what we wanted to bring to the market,” Haber said.
“We always wanted to bring the content to as many devices as possible, not one device to one store.”
Update: Apple has provided clarification of its policy change to AllThingsD. “We have not changed our developer terms or guidelines,” Apple spokesperson Trudy Miller told the publication.
