App Store error sees millions of app reviews get deleted

The issue was first detected by an analytics firm in New York with further investigation then revealing that some 20 million user reviews had been deleted, with half of that figure concentrated in the USA.

The deleted reviews impacted a large swathe of app developers. Apps from major players such as Nike, Google, Hulu, Disney and Microsoft were amongst those seeing their ratings and reviews depleted but dozens of smaller developers were also hit.

The analytics firm first detecting the issue, Appfigures calculates that some 200 developers were affected with 300 of their apps caught up in the bug. It estimates that most lost around half of their accrued user ratings which then had knock-on consequences for app downloads and visibility. Hulu, which is a popular video streaming app saw more than 90% of its reviews removed while Dropbox suffered an 85% ratings loss.

What is the impact of reviews and user ratings?

Much like the importance of online reviews for Google search visibility and consumer confidence, App Store ratings also play a vital role in optimisation and downloads for app developers.

Having huge chunks of a review or rating profile removed can seriously undermined app performance. Having positive reviews removed could lead to the app losing its rankings in the App Store, which means fewer newer users will see it. Especially if rival apps weren’t hit by the same bug, it’s entirely possible that apps caught up in the problem could lose significant market share to rivals.

The impact of lost user ratings could however give some apps an unfair boost. For those apps with a fairly poor star rating due to negative reviews, the unexpected removal of those low ratings could see the app ascending through the rankings, achieving greater App Store visibility than is warranted.

Apple has said that the issue is now resolved and that all reviews, both good and bad, deleted erroneously have now been restored to the appropriate app profile.

We have published a series of posts on App Store optimisation if you’d like to learn more about this crucial element of app marketing:

· How to improve your App Store optimisation

· 4 Actions to optimise your mobile app