Simply Beach iPhone app quietly returns after smut purge

The removal on Friday from the iTunes App Store prompted a flurry of news reports

A shopping application pulled from the iTunes App Store during an Apple purge on "sexy apps" has quietly been reinstated.

Simply Beach, billed as a leading online specialist beachwear store that sells everything you need for the beach, discovered Apple has removed the application late last week.

Simply Beach shows models wearing beachwear along with details on prices, sizes and the like. The Simply Group, who owns and operates the Simply Beach brand, suspected Apple removed the application based on the name alone, without checking the content.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

A shopping application pulled from the iTunes App Store during an Apple purge on "sexy apps" has quietly been reinstated.

Simply Beach, billed as a leading online specialist beachwear store that sells everything you need for the beach, discovered Apple has removed the application late last week.

Simply Beach shows models wearing beachwear along with details on prices, sizes and the like. The Simply Group, who owns and operates the Simply Beach brand, suspected Apple removed the application based on the name alone, without checking the content.

The removal prompted a flurry of news reports. Simply Beach returned to the iTunes App Store on Tuesday night, with no word from Apple on the subject nor any age restriction changes.

"Being charitable to Apple, maybe they made a genuine error," Gerrard Dennis, Managing Director of The Simply Group said.

"However, if that were the case I think an apology would have been forthcoming. We have heard nothing from Apple on subject,but are obviously delighted to have our family friendly app back and we hope people following this story will download it."

Apple are believed to have removed over 5,000 iPhone applications in this latest clampdown. Apple claim the decision is based on the sheer number of applications containing "objectionable content" being submitted, along with complaints from women and concerned parents.

"It came to the point where we were getting customer complaints from women who found the content getting too degrading and objectionable, as well as parents who were upset with what their kids were able to see," Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing told the New York Times this week.

Now available from the Apple iTunes App Store, Simply Beach is free and requires the iPhone 3.0 Software Update.