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Telegram CEO Pavel Durov claims that Apple has been delaying an App Store update to the app that will “revolutionize how people express themselves in messaging.”
In a Telegram message on Thursday, Durov says that the upcoming update has been stuck in Apple’s review process for two weeks with no explanation from the iPhone maker about the holdup.
“If Telegram, one of the top 10 most popular apps globally, is receiving this treatment, one can only imagine the difficulties experienced by smaller app developers,” Durov wrote.
The Telegram chief executive also hit Apple and Google for charging a 30% commission on app and in-app purchases. Durov says the app review delay is just another harm on the commission, which he likens to a “tax.”
“The regulators in the EU and elsewhere are slowly starting to look into these abusive practices,” he said. “But the economic damage that has already been inflicted by Apple on the tech industry won’t be undone.”
This isn’t the first time that a Telegram update has been stuck in Apple’s app review process. Back in 2018, Apple delayed global updates after Russian authorities demanded the Cupertino tech giant remove the secure messaging app from the App Store.
Other app developers and executives have complained about Apple’s App Review process in the past. In 2021, Hopscotch CEO Samantha John called Apple’s review process “Kafkaesque.”
Apple has made moves to amend its App Store policies in recent years, including updated App Review processes and rules and the introduction of a lower 15% commission for apps making less than $1 million.
