App rejection for use of alternate icons

I am currently stuck in app rejection limbo at the moment. This has gone on all day.

My iOS app allows a user to choose 1 of 4 alternate icons or just the default primary icon in the general app settings.

The review team has been rejecting my app for the following reasons which I am apparently failing to decode somehow:

Guideline 4.6 - Design - Alternate App Icons


We continue to find that the app's binary includes icons that may support a user-selectable icons feature but does not fulfill all of the requirements for using alternate icons. Specifically:

- The app includes user-selectable icons but does not provide a way to change the icons within the app.

Next Steps

To resolve this issue, please ensure that the app's icons can only be changed at the user’s request, are relevant to the content and functionality of the app, and can be reverted back to the app's original icon.

If these icons were included in your binary for a reason other than a user-selectable icon feature, reply to this message in App Store Connect and let us know.

This was my previous response explaining the use of the alternate icons:

1. The app's icons *can only* be changed at the user’s request – the user does this from the general app settings as previously explained. We do NOT in anyway do this without the user's request.

2. It is a way for the user to personalise the app. A person who curates things would appreciate this (as I do) so it is relevant to the functionality of the app. This same feature is also in the macOS version presently in the Mac App store and it is implemented the same way.

3. It *can* be reverted back the same way it was changed *by the user* in the app settings. 

4. I do not think the UI to change the app icon should be in the main app (as opposed to the general app settings) because the user is not expected to change the app icon very often. So it is situated in the general app settings along with many other options that the user is not expected change often but can whenever they want to.

Does choosing the alternate app icon in app settings not count as "within the app" ?

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yega
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Does choosing the alternate app icon in app settings not count as "within the app" ?

By “general app settings” do you mean your app’s settings bundle that the user accesses via the system Settings app? Or just a page titled General that is inside your app itself?

If in the settings bundle, then how do you actually change the icon? That wouldn’t give you any context from which to call UIApplication.setAlternateIconName() when the user makes a change.

Or are you calling setAlternateIconName() at some point after the app launches/resumes after visiting your bundle in system Settings? I guess that could work, but probably doesn’t match their expectation that the icon-changed confirmation alert pops up immediately after the user performs a gesture to trigger the change.

Posted by
Scott
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  • Yes, by “general app settings” I mean my app’s settings bundle. And yes, I call UIApplication.shared.setAlternateIconName when the user returns to the app.

    Duolingo literally does the same when you start a paid subscription and when your subscription ends. The icon is only updated when you launch Duolingo THEN you get the pop up ( same as in my app).

    The guideline also doesn't say anything about calling setAlternateIconName after the app resumes being bad.

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    yega
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Does choosing the alternate app icon in app settings not count as "within the app" ?

What do you mean by "app settings"? Do you mean that you've usd a Settings.bundle to add settings for your app to the main Settings app? If that is what you mean, then that clearly isn't "within the app".

Having said that, it seems very pedantic that they would reject you for doing that. So... yeah, actually, that's exactly what they would do!

I suggest that you move the settings inside the app and see what happens.

If you're unsure if they have correctly understood how to change the icon - which is possible, though I think unlikely - then send them a screen capture video showing how to do it.

Posted by
endecotp
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My experience has always been that it is always best to just do what they say immediately, i.e. move the settings into the app now, rather than trying to argue or appeal or whatever. But who knows, you might be lucky!

Posted by
endecotp
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  • That just sounds wrong and sounds like bullying which I do not like. If a review can show me that I've violated a guideline, I will make changes to follow that guideline. BUT I will not be bullied into changing my UX on the reviewer's whim. And nobody should encourage this behaviour.

    Edit: To add, a reviewer once asked to remove a sandbox privilege my app needed to function and I had to point it out. You can't always just do what they ask you to do no questions asked.

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    yega
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UPDATE:

I made an appeal and received a call from the review team clarifying things. So it turns out the UI used to select the alternate icons specifically needs to be in the main app itself and the app settings (Settings bundle) does NOT count as "within the app" (the part that was confusing to me originally).

There were other acceptable scenarios like if an alternate icon is tied to a paid bundle. But the biggest tip for me was that when / if you're confused about the rejection / review of your app, you can simply request for a call and someone will reach out via phone call to explain what is wrong and what you need to do.

Posted by
yega
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if you're confused about the rejection / review of your app, you can simply request for a call and someone will reach out via phone call to explain what is wrong and what you need to do.

Or alternatively, you can post on this forum and "someone" (two of us actually!) will tell you the very same thing!

Do let us know if they eventually approve it - good luck!

Posted by
endecotp
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  • Thanks! You have to admit what you both said was speculative at best though. No one knew exactly how I had violated the guidelines for sure.

    That said, your reply did help me move forward. I was going post a screen recording in the review thread like you suggested but then I saw a note in the review reply box that said to appeal if I disagreed instead of replying and so I did that and got the call which was very helpful.

    Again, my takeaway is to ask to speak to someone when in doubt.

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    yega
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Well... call me a pessimistic old cynic, but I think that the advice you get over the phone from App Review is also "speculative at best". I've only tried that phone consultation thing once, and the guy was friendly and sounded like he knew what he was talking about - so I did what he said, and I still get rejected. It was almost like an "AI" conversation - convincing and grammatically correct, but fundamentally nonsense.

As I said, good luck!

Posted by
endecotp
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  • Looks like I might need some of that luck then lol! Thanks again. I just finished making changes and re-submitted. Fingers crossed.

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    yega

  • It got rejected one more time haha. And then I had to attach a screen recording and THEN it got accepted. Cheers!

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    yega
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