Let’s say you published an application on mobile platforms and this application is constantly getting bad reviews on the App Store. In the end, the reliability of your application, whose score falls below 2 out of 5, is damaged and your download numbers are also experiencing a serious decrease. Sounds hard to pick up from here, doesn’t it? However, Apple has apparently found a way to reverse this situation in less than a month.
The podcast listening application called Apple Podcasts was always getting low-rated comments in the App Store until 1 month ago. Users, who did not refrain from criticizing the application due to errors and deficiencies, reduced the score of Apple Podcasts to 1.8. However, the application team, which changed the place where users were asked for points, increased this score to 4.7 in a very short time.
Points are shown as being awarded to shows, not apps
Developer Kosta Eleftheriou noticed the absurd success of the app in a short time on the App Store. “Is Apple manipulating the ratings of its own apps?” Eleftheriou, who made a tweet with his statements, caused other users to pay attention to this issue. Apple’s method of increasing the score, which was understood later, was a very small change, but it was the kind that could be called a cheat.
Apple Podcasts, which received a low score every time it asked the user for points during use due to errors and deficiencies, found the solution to change the time it wanted points. By placing this notice between podcasts shows, the developers created the impression that the comment was requested for the show itself, not the app. Users who liked the programs on the platform started to give 5 stars to the application by praising the shows. Apple Podcasts’ rating on the App Store rose from 1.8 to 4.7 in about 3 weeks and continues to rise.