Apple now allows apps to send ads as push notifications
New guidelines also outlaw new dating and fortune telling apps, unless they provide a unique experience.
Apple issued new guidelines about what apps on its App Store can and can't do.
Apps available at the Apple App Store can now send ads and other promotions as push notifications, as long as the user authorizes them. The updated guidelines, announced Wednesday, mean that users who choose to opt in will see ads show up on their Apple devices alongside text messages and breaking news alerts.
Apple also announced Wednesday that apps categorized as "dating" or "fortune telling" would be rejected "unless they provide a unique, high-quality experience."
App developers will be required to use Apple's official API to gather customers' reviews and ratings of their apps. This means they will no longer be able to ask users leading questions with custom review prompts.
"Use the provided API to prompt users to review your app; this functionality allows customers to provide an App Store rating and review without the inconvenience of leaving your app, and we will disallow custom review prompts," Apple said in its guidelines.
