By Someone call Steve Jobs so he can get just a tiny bit of amusement out of his seemingly-always too-serious day: Cosmopolitan – the magazine young women love and men hate to admit they love – has released a sex positions app for the Android market. I know what you’re thinking: no, this won’t help your sex life if you’re already bad in bed. You have to learn to walk before you can crawl. But Cosmo’s at least making it easy for you to pretend you’re not as experienced as you really are.
The app – available for download in the market for $2.99 (which I’m not too keen on buying to check out for myself… yet) – will serve up a daily dosage of sex positions for you to try out when you and your partner find the time to get intimate. That’s all there is to it, really, but you have to begin to wonder if Jobs was right in calling Android a porn store. This is far from porn, but I’m sure those parental supervision advocates slapping Google on the wrist a while back won’t appreciate the open availability of this app to anyone with a phone that can access paid market additions.
While many will argue “Well kids shouldn’t have cell phones anyway,” the fact of the matter is that they do. The app being paid would limit most of those Android-toting kids to just taking a quick gander at the preview images (as they’d need to ask their parents for their credit or debit card information to add to Google Checkout), but even then there are some carriers (T-Mobile here in the US and soon to be a lot more) that allow you to pay for apps alongside your regular usage bill giving your kids freedom to buy whatever they want.
My question is this: will Google remove this app from the Android market? Does Google consider a sex positions app – which doesn’t show actual humans performing said acts – as ‘obscene’ as they consider a Hitler app? They definitely should if Merriam-Webster’s definition of the word is anything to go by, so I’m just waiting to see how they’ll treat this case. Perhaps I can finally lay to rest my qualms with their inconsistency in governing the market, but that remains to be seen. For now, go and get yourself some sex positions!
Either the kids are too young to understand what they’re seeing, or they’re old enough to actually even use the positions. Ok, I was exaggerating a bit, but you get the point.
I don’t understand why anyone would pay for this, there are already 20+ FREE sex position apps – even some with animations!
Why would you even for one second think google would remove this from the market? It’s just illustrations meant for adults (with a discription).
The app is completly and utterly fine and in no way can be harmfull to anyone, not even children. Perhaps it’s an American thing.
First of all, there are already multiple sex position applications on Market. Second, instead of censoring these sort of applications from your children (thus market), you should educate your children. Even if they are curious, what do they loose? Is sex so evil so they should never look at such applications? These are only pictures!
In contrast to the Hitler applications, sex is not intended to offend, oppress, kill, extinguish whole groups of humans or any other type of animal on the planet.
Sex position apps are something I’ve actually never thought to look for in the market so I didn’t know multiple existed until now, but any human being can find these types of apps offensive. It’s just that some apps offend people more than others. By definition, it is just as obscene as anything else. It probably is an American thing – a lot of people still consider kissing in public an “issue” here (and don’t get me started on what I’ve learned and heard about the American peoples’ opinion on kissing in public earlier in the 1900s) – but I don’t think sex positions are something that should – at the least – be readily available in the Android market. Meant for adults, obtainable by non-adults. That’s the issue for me. Just my two cents.
Actually, it’s also on the iPhone app store. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cosmopolitans-sex-position/id342026650?mt=8
Quentin this is already in apples app store. I think. So I am sure its OK for android
@MrSnowflake Sex is the ultimate expression of love. I can understand that they want to censor the hardcore type of apps, but this does in no way offend anyone.
@Wello how can you say for sure it doesn’t offend anyone at all? Yes, we’re all adults “here”. We know what sex is and we know what it entails. But you can’t just flat out say it offends no one at all.
@gxhe it is indeed available in the app store, but that wasn’t the question.
My point is if apple approved it. Google will
Um..don’t know what you’ve been covering but there are several sex position apps on the market that do show pictures allready have been there awhile and havent been removed by google yet
Whatever app you release, it will offend at least one person/group. It’s inevitable. But what I hate is those who think of sex like a bad thing. They need to stop making it such a taboo subject. This generation of parents are too “careful”.
I live in Sweden and we got sex ed early in our years just to prevent any child pregnancies/complications. I hope other cultures obtain the same strategy (especially America).
Might be because 80% of Swedes are atheists. And that brings up another question: I don’t like any religion at all, because they offend me. Why do they get to be in the market, but not subjects that every human being can relate to? /unnecessarily long comment
You can find the same application in AppStore!
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/cosmopolitans-sex-position-day/id342026650?mt=8
Quentyn gets it wrong again.
The Nazi flag is a clear promotion of hate, not obscenity.
The Cosmo app seems to display sexual activity via text and images. Its a fair question to ask whether Google will eliminate this under the terms, but it is a different category than hate speech.
http://www.android.com/market/terms/developer-content-policy.html
The Cosmo SPOTD app has already been on the iTunes app store for quite a while now.
Cosmo on iTunes, but what about Steve Jobs and his freedom from porn?
I think the best compromise is to have these apps only show up via search, and not while browsing. It’s important to remember that smartphones have the internet, so if kids really want to look this stuff up they’re going to find a lot worse than a Cosmo app.
if they use their android browser and google “porn” & turn safe search off (to get better results) they would be able to see real porn not just one colore images
This article is nothing more than Quentyn trolling for outrage, he’s posted it as a follow up to his earlier article http://phandroid.com/2010/08/13/google-removes-nazi-and-hitler-theme-from-the-android-market/ and is trying to say that a harmless non-graphic sex-aid app is clearly worse than an app supporting the nazi’s
Stevie J is asexual. Just look at him.
Isn’t Cosmo available right next to the checkout counter in most supermarkets? I’m not sure why something that is so publicly available in hard copy would be censored in a digital format.
Also I remember from high school (20+ years ago) that most of the teen female magazines (Seventeen, etc) featured tips on bedroom gymnastics.
@Eric I don’t see how I got it wrong when I based my report on other outlets’ that stated Google removed it because it was obscene. I think it’s best to take it up with them.
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@Vinnie I didn’t “clearly” say that, nor did I suggest as much. Please recheck your facts.
For anyone else confused on my stance, read comment #5.
“Oh my god, there’s a monochromatic drawing of silhouettes maybe having sex!” That’s not even close to porn. Go back to your Sunday school class, prude!
@Wade from the article: “…This is far from porn…”
@Quentyn
Ok then, so what is your point. In the article you question whether google will remove the app from the market, and seem to imply that they should in order to be consistent. If that is the case then you ARE saying that this app is at least equivalent to one which promotes an outwardly racist agenda. Or is it simply the word obscene you take issue with? Even using the definition to which you refer http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/obscene it’d be hard to see how this app falls into that category, it makes no effort to suggest users go out to seek random sexual partners, in-fact given the maker I would assume it is intended for use by couples already in meaningful relationships looking to spice up their love life. Whilst I do now, and when reading your previous article understand the issue you are trying to bring to light, the examples you use make it very hard for people to take your argument seriously.
Vinnie (comment 20) is right. The author wrote this article as an easy way to catch attention and start controversy (he seemingly succeeded). The article doesn’t discuss other approved apps of this nature on iTunes app store or on Android store. Very sloppy, Quentyn. Do your research before you post.
Another thing that should be mentioned by more authors on this topic (not just Quentyn) is that all of unfiltered Internet is available from all smart phones (including iPhone), so what’s on the app store doesn’t matter, since all one has to do is open a web browser and go to a porn website.
If parents are so worried about their children looking at obscene things then they should not get them an internet capable phone as they could simply search for far worse.
@Alex that’s true, but that’s why I also mentioned those parental supervision advocates. Perhaps parental controls should be another focus of Google’s in upcoming versions of Android, but that’s just one man’s opinions. I understand people will disagree with me, and not only do I understand that fact, I’m ok with it. I like to see other people’s perspectives and hear their thoughts and I simply won’t shoot their views down as quickly as some others are keen to do.
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@Vinnie I’m simply trying to say that all apps should be created equal and treated equally. There are groups out there that detest anything sexual, but the fact that they’re very small in size doesn’t mean their opinions don’t matter. In this article, I never say anything to lead anyone to believe that I am totally against this app: I think it’s quite funny and I take to it with a humorous approach. My goal with these opinionated reports are to try and open up an avenue of thought for whatever Google engineer might spot them. If you aren’t going to govern your own market, at least allow the end user to govern it on their own terms (locally, of course). I just want a better, cleaner Android where – while it can still remain open (and I always prefer an open approach) – there should be ways for users to more easily control their experience. I’ve never been a fan of happenstance and Google does nothing to make sure that I don’t need to tolerate it. I’m also not trying to bash Cosmo in this instance – as I’ve already admitted that I’ve never checked for sex positions apps in the market – it just so happens that the targets I choose to relay my sentiments don’t sit well with everyone. I apologize to Cosmo and anyone else if they saw it otherwise.
My network in the UK (Vodafone) has content control in place unless you prove your age, so that’s not totally true (UK anyway) about unfiltered internet.
I do think the article has been written to provoke controversy, and IMO is not really need on this site. Valid article invalidly written.
Wow, major editorial fail. Of course Google won’t remove this. It’s just sex.
Anyone with a smartphone already have access to a pretty much unlimited supply of material that is more adult than this. It’s called the World Wide Web. Look it up.
@ Quentyn ~ “Meant for adults, obtainable by non-adults.” just want to point out this app doesn’t provide anything people wouldn’t find in the magazine already. That magazine from what I have heard is targeted towards the 12-14 crowd, the same age that would have thier own smartphones basically.
@ all the people attacking the author for whatever reason – bring it down a notch, crikey! It’s just an article.
Proxy Server, thereby circumventing the filtering used by vodafone.
“I await Google’s response” ARE YOU SERIOUS? I thought this was an Android news site, not a one man crusade. This and the Hitler article are BS journalism. You have lost a reader.
@vinnie, alex, wade, wello
quentyn’s job is to write an article and then ask for opinions. and he did a really good job here.
there is nothing wrong with sex. as a few of you melodramatic fools have pointed out, it is the ultimate expression of love.
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but, the question still stands: should an app like this, one that utterly promotes sex, be readily available to 12 – 14 year old boys and girls?
the fact of the matter is that at this age, and a bit younger sometimes, puberty kicks in viciously.
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the problem with these kinds of apps (and cosmo in general) is that it shamelessly promotes sex as just another recreational activity, as opposed to “the ultimate expression of love” (Wello, August 19, 2010). now some of you might think to yourselves “haha im a stud, i screw around and dont give a damn”. but i assure you that you are one of the few.
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so once again, quentyn’s question: should an application that shamelessly promotes sex as nothing special, be easily available to our 12 and 13 year old daughters? or should google work on a way to isolate these apps in a “mature” section?
What it boils down to is just plain sexually immaturity for someone to equate natural human interaction to an act of genocide. Why in the world should we be as offended by a naked body as we are by a man trying to kill a whole race of people?
If you are going to block animated sex positions, then you might as well just block the whole internet — problem solved.
I’ve seen (ahem)a Kama Sutra app from the itunes store. If that’s ok’d there, then should be no problem for a similar app on Android market.
There’s already a bunch of these on the market, so it’ll be fine. Those are free, too.
I’m thinking you can find all sorts of free sex positions on PornHub…
Um…I would be happy to see the market wallpaper spammers removed. Not for the content, but because it annoys me to no end to have to scroll through pages of them in the just in section every time i browse.
Google should enforce their TOS rules that they set for themselves. No more and no less. If you don’t like their rules, if you think they are too lenient or too strict, then just make your own market.
kids won’t see it in the phone but teachers will take that material to their schools, tv stations will broadcast it to their tv sets, newspaper/magazine stands will show them to the public (all of it), brothers will still have magazines hidden somewhere, browsers will hit porn sites.. at least the phone will not show sex related material in the app market.
OMG please save the children!! I love how everything is about saving the children.. I mean forget the parents actually raising them. I need Google and Apple to keep these bad apps off the market so I don’t actually have to raise my child or watch what they are doing.
Now if I could just get all the ISP’s to monitor and block EVERYTHING bad on my internet then I wouldnt have to monitor that either.
Oh and if they could ban video games also that would be good..I don’t want to bother with checking that out either..I would much rather just throw my kid in front of the TV instead of watching them..
wello: I thought Sweden was a Muslim country. OK maybe not now but it will be in say 20 years.
“You have to learn to walk before you can crawl.”
You got that backwards, dude.
Everything offends someone. Does google have no guidelines? (Ie. No nipples, penises, vulva?)
Do you know how many free porn sites there are on the internet? There is more footage than someone could spend a lifetime watching. All free on the internet.
@ari-free No way. Look at wiki you idiot. Not even 10% of the population are even from a predominately muslim nation. Even then a big fraction of those are turks, who are a fairly modern society.
@Quentyn Kennemer, ah the American way, violence is a ok for a little kid but god forbid he see a tit. That pretty much sums up all that is wrong with the USA.
@steve,
as ari-free said, not yet. but my bet is that in a half decade, most of european nations will have a very large muslim population. and since they spawn at a much higher rate than any other race, it’s only a matter of time until they are the majority.
This is the type of thing you don’t want your kids to get into. My app, Smart Lock, keeps your kids out of apps like these. Check it out. :)
iPad even has one.
Pornhub.com has all the sex positions, and it is easy to access from an android and iphone.
There are porn apps. Literally, apps for watchin porn, in the marketplace.
Why would they remove an app that tells you how to do different sex positions and leave the porn?
LMAO
“I’m 12. What is this?”
@Quentin & his defenders: Many critics of this article, myself included, don’t have a problem with the debate on what should be allowed on the market and what shouldn’t. We are just pointing out that this article is poorly researched. Quentin is asking a valid question, but he doesn’t provide quality information while asking that question. Many people come here for Android news, and expect journalistic integrity. He needs to research his topics. For example, if something is a rumor, then be clear that it’s a rumor. Cite sources as much as possible. Keep political and religious opinions out. A question on the “sex in app store” is not a news story, more of a personal opinion blog. But even personal opinion blogs gain in quality if the author properly researches their topics.
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I would like to leave Phandroid editors with these words. I regularly come to Phandroid for Android news and rumors. I expect well researched and written articles. Phandroid has mostly done a very good job of that, but there is room for improvement. Thank you.