Apple is not happy with a small British firm and has threatened to pull the plug on its voice assistant app, Evi.
It was only last month when Cambridge-based startup True Knowledge released the voice-activated, personal assistant app for iPhone and Android smartphones.
Evi is able to answer questions posed by the user just like Siri on the iPhone 4S, but is available on all iOS and Android devices.
It seems that those in charge at Apple Towers are less than impressed. William Tunstall-Pedoe, chief executive of True Knowledge, told The Guardian newspaper that he had been contacted by an Apple representative last Friday, and was informed that a decision had been made and that the Evi app would be removed imminently from the Apple App Store.
Evi, like Siri, uses the same speech recognition system, Nuance. However, it also uses its own set of servers to work on the content of the user’s request. Evi is available on the App Store for 69p and on the Android Market for free and it has proved popular with mobile users.
TechWeekEurope checked and the Evi app was still available on the Apple App Store as of Tuesday 7am.
Siri comes preloaded on the iPhone 4S and is deeply embedded into that device. However, it has continued to struggle with strong accents in the UK, and has been blamed for a dramatic increase in mobile data use.
To make matters worse, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, now chief scientist with FusionIO, has voiced his criticism of Siri and claimed that the similar Iris voice recognition software available for the Android platform was superior.
Siri also faces another major problem – it is mostly US-focused and cannot do UK-focused searches. Consequently, many Brits have opted to install Evi which, unlike Siri, can look up British businesses and maps. It also reportedly handles British regional accents much better than Siri.
Tunstall-Pedoe told The Guardian that downloads of Evi are currently running at equal levels on the Android and iOS platforms – but it remains to be seen how long Evi will remain on Apple’s App Store.
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This seems typical of Apple's modus operandi these days. Someone produces something which may (or may not) be similar or compete in some way with an Apple product.
So Apple legislate, using multi-million dollar lawsuits that in some cases cannot be contested by small companies.
I've nothing against Apple products, but while this mentality persists I will not buy them.
I love Apple, preferably pureed, seived and juiced then served in a glass. That is the only Apple I'll ever have.
Have apple not heard of anti-trust and monopoly laws? SCUM Thats why I don't have an apple. Android linux and windows all the way.
Simon get off your band wagon, just played with the Eli tool and it's a sort of con, compared to the way the Siri application works Eli is a waste of time.
Apples user experience is and end to end thing. If you don't like them controlling it don't use it.
Its un-fortunate that Apple hasn't bothered to get its act together, PRIOR, to the release of Siri on the 4S with a business search for UK customers. But, to be honest, I love my iPhone!
Even though (for UK customers) Siri is currently a complete waste of time, the up-dated processing speed is great. I don't see why Apple didn't put that at the forefront of their marketing campaign, rather than a voice that can write texts, say my name and check my alarms, occasionally. I became bored with Siri within a week anyway.. Lets hope that Apple addresses the search issue ASAP and start thinking about its loyal customers abroad.
I have just downloaded and installed Evi on my iPhone4 (not S). My wife has an iPhone4s and she finds it's US bias frustrating and therefore no longer bothers with it. I have asked Evi some very specific UK based questions and she has come up with goods on each occassion without fail..
Apple don't get jealous, accept that some people do do things better than you do. Live and let live Apple, the world will be a better place
I wonder if it was Microsoft doing this would they get away with this. I cant help feeling its more to do with you can use our app store just don't compete with us. Shame Apple you should be better than this! So much for a free marketplace!
Always refreshing to see that there IS sense out there - especially when it comes to Apple! Finally the ridiculous US-bias of the functionality is mentioned publicly instead of the stupid misleading and near-lying adverts on our UK TVs vaunting how great Siri is
Apple are reminding me of microsoft because they both bully other smaller companies by using their vast funds. typical U.S bull!!!
I am not criticising Apple for removing EVI - I installed this app months ago and found it to be frustratingly slow. Assistant which is available on both Android and IOS devices is far more responsive!
UGH, I've got an iPad... it sucks if you want to do more than watch video, visit a website or play around with photos and I only use it for testing websites (to make sure the stuff I develop works on it) or as a portable television... other than that there's f- all special about it. ;D
Can't have flash or java because Jobs Almighty didn't like Apple users running whatever they want on the machines they've paid for, user-freedom is evidently a threat to Apple's anti-competitive, vertical-integration business model. - Anything that may expose the core of the operating system by letting users run code arbitrarily appears to be banned. - Only applications preordained by the holy app store are to be used. Things that people release for free that compete with Apple's apps regularly get blocked.
Being patronized, controlled and extorted by a monopolistic, child-labor-employing, anti-recycling corporation that makes a mere battery change a costly and inconvenient ordeal seems a bad deal for the consumer. But then... I am used to non-Apple "technology" (ie. remove all power-user features from an existing piece of software and make it pretty).
I am from the UK and have never heard of Evi before, but I just downloaded it to my phone and it works great! Much better than my friends who all seem to struggle to get Siri to do anything useful at all.
Sad that it will be pulled from the apple store, but not too bothered personally as I have an Android phone.
How come Apple constantly get away with these obvious anti-competition behaviours?
It makes no sense at all, or is it purely that everybody, including the US legal authorities are afraid of taking on Apple's well healed lawyers?
oh wait, this is a non US software company that Apple is about to stiffle and try to force into bankruptcy, ok then, no problem, carry on...