Apple Blocked Pro-Net Neutrality App, But Changed Its Mind

Net Neutrality is on the minds of a lot of Americans right now. In an effort to help users have more awareness with regards to this matter, an app that can monitor throttling was uploaded to Apple’s App Store. The company initially tried to block the app, but once news about its decision broke out, Apple promptly changed its mind and allowed the software.

The app in question is called Wehe and it was created by Northeastern University research, David Coffnes, Motherboard reports. The idea behind the app was simple; it would use seven other apps as benchmarks and test them to see if the ISP of the user is throttling any of them. These apps were Netflix, YouTube, Amazon, NBC Sports, Skype, Vimeo, and Spotify.

If all seven apps are installed on the user’s iPhone, it would provide a clearer picture as to whether or not their ISP is throttling any of them, but that’s not necessary at all. Even having just two would be able to provide enough information to come to that conclusion.

For example, if the device is connected to the LTE network and the app says that the YouTube app was only downloading at 6Mbps while the Netflix app was downloading at 6Mbps, it shows a clear differentiation. According to Coffness, this is an indication of throttling by that ISP. In the case of Motherboard, the ISP was Verizon.

As Ars Technica notes, Apple was not crazy about approving the app at first, saying that it provided no benefit to users. It wasn’t until word got out that the company could be anti-Net Neutrality that the app was finally approved for the App Store.

In an email to Motherboard, Coffness said that he had to prove that Wehe was actually what it claimed it was. Apparently, the conversation was pleasant enough, but the company did not provide a good reason for why it rejected the app in the first place.