14 DAY TRIAL // VLC has had a tumultuous existence on Apple’s mobile operating system. The player has seen more entries and exits from the App Store than its developers would care to admit. Following the release of iOS 8, it was yanked yet again.
It’s not clear when exactly this happened, but the App Store no longer lists the presence of VLC for iOS, nor could we find it on our iPhones after applying iOS 8.
VideoLAN is mum
While it’s typical for Apple to remove apps without explanation, the developer does owe it to the public to fill in the blanks. Yet VideoLAN isn’t saying a word about it. The team’s forum already has a few topics open on the subject, but none of the team’s members could be bothered to answer the question: why is VLC for iOS no longer in the App Store?
We checked on Twitter and other social networks where the team’s members are active (when they feel like it), and nothing.
Upon further investigation, we can confirm that the player has indeed disappeared from the App Store. We loaded it up back on our iPhones from an IPA library that we keep for situations like these, and the player works on iOS 8, albeit with a few hiccups here and there. Could this be for maintenance reasons? If so, why was it necessary to remove the app from the iTunes Store listings? It’s not a biohazard only because it doesn’t render video properly.
Not the first time
Unfortunately, there has always been uncertainty regarding VLC for iOS. Apple has picked at it quite a few times, and it has even removed it (or had it removed) on several occasions for not complying with rules.
For its part, the VideoLAN team has disappointed the user base several times. Whenever maintenance updates are necessary, they often fail to deliver on promise, and worse still, they fail to communicate their plans.
Not exactly a disaster
While it’s sad to see VLC part with the App Store yet again, all is not lost. There are dozens, if not hundreds of other video players, all based on the same code that VLC uses to render countless formats, so you can just go to the App Store, browse a little, and make your pick.
Don’t get the paid ones and don’t rely on those with tons of ads and in-app purchases. There are many of those, but there are also clean VLC clones in there that you can grab and enjoy without too much hassle. In the meantime, we’ll be investigating the matter and revisit the subject when we have more to share with you guys.