Following the news that Apple had pulled the world’s most popular Bitcoin wallet app from its App Store, one pissed-off Reddit user has convinced five iPhone owners to destroy their phones in exchange for some new Android-powered Nexus 5s.
Redditor round-peg placed 2.56 Bitcoins ($2,000) in escrow with NerdFighterSean, the creator of the popular Bitcoin tip bot, to prove he really meant business.
Here are the five videos redditors made:
Oscar tossed his phone off a ledge.
Keith and Chris used some wrenches.
Redditor Netpastor used a metal stick.
And perhaps best of all, Brent used a machete.
“The banning of Blockchain, the last bitcoin app in the app store, I think should be the last straw for anyone interested in Bitcoin who thinks ownership of your own device is important,” round-peg stated.
Apple removed the app on Wednesday, citing “an unresolved issue” it would not disclose to Wired. The app was 2-years-old and had been downloaded 120,000 times. Those users will still be able to use the app on their phones but won’t get any Apple software updates.
“There was no communication prior to removal of this popular app, no indication of any problems and no opportunity to redress any issues, making a mockery of the claim that there was an ‘unresolved issue,’” Blockchain stated on its blog. “Sadly, [other Bitcoin wallet apps like] Coinbase, Gliph, and CoinJar have all been sacrificed on the altar of innovation.”
The creators of Blockchain speculate that the application was banned to eliminate “competition using their monopolistic position in the market in a heavy handed manner.” Blockchain was the last remaining wallet app on iTunes.
On the other hand, Google’s Android operating system has embraced wallet apps such as Blockchain—despite the fact that it also has its own, Google Wallet.
Photo by brentonflickr/Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0)