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Tim Cook on stage at an Apple event in September 2018.
The software comes and goes on the App Store, but this week marks a comeback that could have real significance for Apple. OurPact, an app that allows parents to monitor and limit the use of technology by their kids, is back in the App Store after being removed this spring. Its creators sent a social message to subscribers to inform them of the return of the app to iOS earlier this week.
"A big thank you to our community for the support provided throughout these moves," reads in the announcement of OurPact. "Every tweet, share and mention has helped spread the word and restore the future of digital parenting on iOS. We are looking forward to developing family screen time solutions for years to come! "
OurPact was one of 11 apps allowing parental control on children's smartphone use to be restricted or completely removed from the App Store in April. At the time, Apple claimed that the move was due to privacy concerns. He argued that the applications in question used mobile device management technology that "[give] a third party controls and accesses a device and its most sensitive information, including the location of the user, the use of the application, the email accounts, the permissions of the Camera and navigation history. "
The applications affected by the move claimed that Apple was only trying to reduce competition for its Screen Time service, integrated with iOS 12 when it was launched late last year. In response, the OurPact blog stated that MDM did not allow it to view emails, calendars, contacts, SMS or iMessages, browser history, location of the browser. device or any other critical information.
The question may be one where both sides have some validity to their claims. Apple's MDM platform has been the target of malicious exploits and attacks over the past year. But this is not the first time that Apple has taken measures that could be considered as limiting competition with its own internal services.
Below: screenshots of the Apple Screen Time competing application, taken from our iOS 12 test.
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Screen Time has a first-rate real estate value in the Settings application, near notifications and do not disturb.
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It is disabled by default, so you must first enable it …
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Apple explains to the user exactly what the feature does.
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You will be asked if you are setting it up for yourself or for a child in your family.
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Choose the family and you will get more explanations and a prompt to add a child.
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By choosing the family route, you will be prompted to enter the Apple ID and password of the child you wish to add.
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Whichever route you have taken, once the Time screen is activated, you will see this settings panel with the various features and customizations that you can change.
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At the bottom you will also find some additional parameters like these.
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Here we dig deeper into the graphics.
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There are even more graphics.
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Use Down Time to set a time window during which only applications that you have explicitly allowed will be available on all your iCloud devices that support Screen Time.
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Go back to the main settings menu and press Application Limits brings you here, where you can start the process of setting time limits for use for certain categories of applications. Application limits are disabled by default …
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You can choose which categories of apps to restrict after enabling the feature.
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Here you set the time limit and can make additional changes to the applications to be limited.
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Another key feature, "Always Allowed", is also accessible from the main settings menu of the screen. That's what you see if you tap on it: a list of applications free from downtime.
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The "Content and Privacy Restrictions" feature of Screen Time essentially acts as a traditional parental control. you can limit the features that a child can use or the content that he can see.
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Some other settings in the top-level menu Content and Privacy Restrictions.
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Here, we customize the content and privacy restrictions for iTunes and App Store purchases.
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These are the settings for content like TV and music.
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You can also set a special secret code for the Screen Time functions.
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Apple has already been facing similar criticism regarding the App Store. In the particular case of OurPact and screen time management, two of the applications filed an antitrust complaint with the European Union. The company also forged links with Spotify, an independent, streaming audio company that claimed to have been treated unfairly to encourage listeners to listen to Apple Music. The EU has advanced further arguments on the fact that Apple should not offer its own services on the e-commerce platform that it manages, and the group's leadership is key. It is willing to consider a strict position with regard to the big American technology companies.
Even some national leaders questioned the relationship. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) Said she would break with several tech giants if she was successful in her bid for the presidency in 2020.
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