It would seem that Apple’s App Store has everything going for it — millions of rabid iPhone and iPod touch users, over 100,000 apps (and counting) and tens of thousands of developers eager to keep their virtual shelves stocked. So why are so many respected developers starting to flee?

A recent Ars Technica report attempts to shed some light on the problem, and what they’ve discovered is same problems, different day. “Apple’s control over the App Store — which seems arbitrary at times — still frustrates developers,” writes Chris Foresman. “True, it has over 100,000 applications, but how many of them are created with the kind of care and passion we take for granted in the Mac software world?”

One of the most high-profile examples of late is Facebook’s Joe Hewitt, a respected developer who previously worked on Firefox and the Firebug plug-in. Hewitt threw up his hands and shifted responsibility of the iPhone Facebook app to another developer within the company. “My decision to stop iPhone development has had everything to do with Apple’s policies,” he writes. “I am very concerned that they are setting a horrible precedent for other software platforms, and soon gatekeepers will start infesting the lives of every software developer.”

And he’s not alone. Justin Williams of Second Gear also recently abandoned the platform, instead focusing his efforts strictly on the Mac. “Making 25 times more [money] on my Mac apps certainly made it easier,” Williams says, “but the reason I got out was for the most part political, and part of me wanting to make a statement.”

As Ars Technica’s Foresman points out, “Ultimately, it seems there are two basic routes Apple could take. [They] could merely check apps for technical errors and malware, and otherwise approve everything. Alternately, Apple could allow users to install iPhone apps from whomever they choose, and make the App Store a sort of collection of premium, vetted applications.”

“It’s been almost two years and we developers have no better relationship with Apple than we did when this whole thing was announced,” Williams concludes. “That’s unfortunate.”