iTunes App Store “Release Date” Sorting Broken?

Swing by the iTunes App Store, pick a category, and get/go to the Sort by: Release Date listing and it may look like Apple hasn’t added any new iPhone and iPod touch apps since November 19 — only they have, and it’s just the iTunes listings that are broken.



Rewind: We started getting questions from users who thought no new apps were being released, or that Apple had somehow frozen the App Store. Then we got reports from developers saying their apps weren’t showing up in the release date listings even though they’d been approved and put into the store. Finally, we got reports of the release date listings being flat out busted, and that’s what looks to be the case.

What does this mean? For users looking to find new apps in iTunes, good luck with that. Absent sort by release date, you’ll have to hit up third party tracking sites like AppShopper until Apple fixes the App Store proper. For developers who were hoping for the brief spotlight that listing provides for those users, well you’re out some primo free marketing. And for many, that’s going to hurt.

So, to sum up, yes Apple is still posting new apps, but no they’re not updating the release date lists, and yes this sucks for both user discovery and developer exposure.