Nope, the company is called shifty jelly. They've still got other iOS apps though so it wouldn't surprise if they were taken down.
I'm going to assume the original statement is FUD as accused. It does seem incredibly unlikely a dev could draw such a link even if Apple were doing that kind of penalisation (which makes literally no sense to me).
(I'll probably listen anyway since I like those guys, but still ...)
> Coincidentally, Russell Ivanovic is a case in point for what could happen if you defy Apple and launch on Android first. Ivanovic had initially been very lucky to have been assigned an Apple Developer Relations representative who gave him exclusive promotional opportunities. Few developers get assigned these representatives. Among the benefits Ivanovic received was the privilege to have Shifty Jelly's apps preloaded on iPads in Apple stores in Australia, a major marketing boost.
> Things went south In 2012, when Ivanovic launched a new version of the Pocket Casts app on the Android Play Store first, rather than Apple's App Store. The launch was a real success, and he publicly shared the good news. Before he knew it, his Apple Developer Relations representative stopped all contact. The representative would not even answer his emails. Ivanovic had been completely shut out.
Source: http://www.elischiff.com/blog/2015/3/24/fear-of-apple
But thanks for the info, I can see it certainly would stink to be treated that way, losing your benefits and being ignored by your contact.
I am not sure if this is "withdrawal of special treatment". These guys made great ios apps, both before and after they started making Android apps.
And it was those things which they lost right, rather than some kind of search position punishment?