competitor_terms.md

Rule: Competitor Platform Terms in Metadata

• Guideline: 2.3.1 – Performance – Accurate Metadata
• Severity: REJECTION
• Category: metadata

What to Check

App Store metadata (name, subtitle, description, keywords, promotional text, What's New) must not reference competing platforms or brands.

Banned Terms

• Android, Google Play, Google Play Store
• Samsung, Galaxy Store
• Huawei, AppGallery
• Amazon Appstore
• Windows Store, Microsoft Store
• APK, sideload

How to Detect

Using asc CLI (pulled metadata)

# Pull canonical metadata first
asc metadata pull --app "<APP_ID>" --version "<VERSION>" --dir ./metadata

# Search across app-info and version localizations
grep -ri "android\|google play\|samsung\|huawei\|apk\|amazon appstore\|windows store\|microsoft store" \
  ./metadata/app-info/ ./metadata/version/<VERSION>/

Using local fastlane metadata

grep -ri "android\|google play\|samsung\|huawei\|apk\|amazon appstore\|windows store\|microsoft store" ./fastlane/metadata/

In Xcode project (Info.plist)

grep -ri "android\|google play" *.xcodeproj/project.pbxproj

Resolution

1. Remove all references to competing platforms from metadata fields
2. Replace with generic terms:
   • "Available on Android" → "Available on multiple platforms"
   • "Also on Google Play" → remove entirely
   • "Transfer from Android" → "Transfer from your previous device"
3. Re-verify using asc metadata push --app "<APP_ID>" --version "<VERSION>" --dir ./metadata --dry-run before uploading

Example Rejection

Guideline 2.3.1 - Performance - Accurate Metadata

We noticed that your app's metadata includes references to other mobile platforms, which is not appropriate for the App Store. Specifically, the following content was found:

• "Android" mentioned in the app description

Next Steps: Remove all references to other mobile platforms from the app's metadata.