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According to both iLounge and Macworld, Apple has decided to ban the sale of protective screen film from all of its retail stores. Why? Nobody really seems to know, and Apple isn’t saying a word. Not yet at least.

The ban, which has been confirmed by multiple companies, would go into effect sometime in May, and would ban all protective covers (clear, anti-glare, and mirrored) from Apple retail stores. Supposedly, the ban will cover not only protective screen film for the iPhone, but for iPods, iPads, and Mac computers as well.

Macworld speculates that there are two main reasons behind Apple’s decision to purge its stores of protective screen film. The first being that these films are often difficult to apply (those air bubbles are a pain,) hence return rates on these products are disproportionately high. Second, Apple doesn’t want customers to think that there products need screen protection in the first place. In my opinion, current iPhones and iPods very resistant to scratches, and don’t really need an extra layer of protection.

Both of these reasons sound equally valid to me, but we won’t know exactly what prompted Apple to do this until they decide to tell us.