Apple Rejects South Park iPhone App

The creators of South Park are the latest developers to have an iPhone application rejected for Apple’s app store. The app would have allowed iPhone users to access episode clips, read South Park news, grab wallpaper and other South Park-related features. In a blog post yesterday on SouthParkStudios.com, the creators explained that Apple had rejected the post because it might be “potentially offensive.” According to the post, Apple said this could change in the future and pointed out that the iTunes Store did not sell songs with explicit lyrics when it first — a situation that has since been remedied.

That’s a very nice and tidy explanation, but there’s only one problem: the iTunes store currently sells seasons 1-12 of South Park’s television show in the iTunes Store as well as the South Park movie and an uncensored version of South Park’s Emmy-award-winning three-part series “Imaginationland.” How can the South Park iPhone app be excluded, but the South Park movie — which features such wholesome content like, “Shut your f$%#ing face Uncle F#$%er” and other fabulous show stoppers –

– is perfectly acceptable?

It seems to me that this has less to do with “potentially offensive” material, and more to do with a product potentially harmful to Apple’s bottom line.

For a more in-depth look at “potentially offensive” apps for your iPhone, check out Mark Sullivan’s recent report, “Can Tech Be Gross? You Bet.”