A full copy of Apple's top secret iPhone Developer Program License Agreement has been published online by the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF).

The move followed a US Freedom of Information Act request to the iPhone developer Nasa - whose apps include, er, The Nasa App - to hand over the elusive document. Nasa duly complied.

So what kind of Draconian detail is to be found in the small print? Here are some of the highlights - or lowlights...

• The first rule of App club is... you can't talk about App Club. Or as the document puts it: You may not issue any press releases or make any other public statements regarding this Agreement, its terms and conditions, or the relationship of the parties without Apple's express prior written approval, which may be withheld at Apple's discretion.
• Apps in the App Store only. Any Apps developed using the iPhone SDK can only be sold in the App Store - unless Apple says they can't. And Apple can say no for any reason - even if the application meets all the formal requirements laid down by Apple.
• No tinkering with any Apple products. This isn't just about jailbreaking, it's about using the phone's antenna to discover wi-fi hotspots and a whole host other potential interesting avenues. All banned. Sorry.
• No reverse engineering This even includes the types of reverse engineering that have have been recognized as "fair use" by the US courts.
• We can kill your app at any time Remember how Amazon got into trouble lately when it remotely nuked thousands of copies of 1984 it didn't have the right license to distribute? Apple can do the same and remotely neutralize apps over-the-air that have been downloaded onto an iPhone or iPod Touch. Or as Apple puts it: "(We can) revoke the digital certificate of any of Your Applications at any time." Big Brother indeed.
• If you get sued we're only liable for $50 Even though Apple controls the distribution, download and customer relations management (CRM) of the App Store completely. So if Apple deleted thousands of your customers' business leads on your iPhone database app - $50 is their maximum payout.

Naturally the EFF thinks all this is a Very Bad Thing - even though over 100,000 developers have already signed up to the agreement. As it said on its website:

How can Apple get away with it? Because it is the sole gateway to the more than 40 million iPhones that have been sold. In other words, it's only because Apple still "owns" the customer, long after each iPhone (and soon, iPad) is sold, that it is able to push these contractual terms on the entire universe of software developers for the platform.

In short, no competition among app stores means no competition for the license terms that apply to iPhone developers.

Follow the link to see the PDF of the iPhone Developer Program License Agreement in all its glory.

Originally published by our sister site, Know Your Mobile