I truly believe Apple doesn't care about false positives when terminating developer accounts. They keep the doors closed and appeal is futile.
Background
I'm an independent mobile game developer for 5+ years. I share my games on social media and get organic users, so everything is transparent. My latest game is a relaxing ball game. It has tap mechanics and players should tap when a ball hits to a xylophone-like bars. In addition, game had level editor feature that players can create their levels, publish and create their videos and share on social media (like geometry dash)
A publisher approached me and proposed me to publish my game on their account. I said ok, because I don't have any budget and operational resource.
A few months after, Apple terminated publisher's account without telling any specific reason. They said fraud. After 15 days, I got account termination message:
Evidence of Dishonest or Fraudulent Activity Your account is associated with terminated developer accounts and/or accounts engaged in fraudulent activities. These associations may include, but are not limited to, shared account information, submissions with similar or identical App Store metadata, app binaries with shared code, resources, or assets, or the transfer of apps engaged in fraudulent activities between accounts.
I had a legal agreement with publisher. I said I can provide any documents but the appeal didn't have any effect. I have spent years on making games and finally made one to grow. Then, this happened. What exactly is this fraudulent activity?
You will not, directly or indirectly, commit any act intended to interfere with any of the Apple Software or Services, the intent of this Agreement, or Apple’s business practices including, but not limited to, taking actions that may hinder the performance or intended use of the App Store, Custom App Distribution, TestFlight, Xcode Cloud, Ad Hoc distribution, or the Program (e.g., submitting fraudulent reviews of Your own Application or any third-party application, choosing a name for Your Application that is substantially similar to the name of a third-party application in order to create consumer confusion, or squatting on application names to prevent legitimate third-party use). Further, You will not engage, or encourage others to engage, in any unlawful, unfair, misleading, fraudulent, improper, or dishonest acts or business practices relating to Your Covered Products or Corresponding Products (e.g., engaging in bait-and-switch pricing, consumer misrepresentation, deceptive business practices, or unfair competition against other developers);
- I haven't used remote config to deceive the reviewer
- I haven't bought reviews or incentivized players for reviews
- I used a unique name, so no trademark infringement or whatsoever
- I have clearly indicated all the prices and never deceived players
- I never had any deceiving ads whatsoever to trick users
So what's the actual reason?
Existing Earnings
Let's discuss what happens to existing earnings (ie proceeds)
Do they pay developer? No.
Do they refund customers? No.
If Apple thinks it's a "fraud" money, do they have a right to seize the funds?
If Apple things it's not a fraud, then why do they ban my/publisher accounts?