[thanaads]

So the rising discontent with Apple's new habit of selective feature
enabling got us thinking -- while we're not experts on the subject,
the generally accepted reasoning for the $20 iPod touch upgrade fee
is the accounting requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act: iPhone
and Apple TV updates are free since revenue from those products is
realized as a subscription over a period of time, but iPod touch updates
can't be free since Apple just records that revenue directly.

That certainly makes sense to us when applied to things like
the 802.11n Enabler, which was trivially cheap and turned on
unadvertised hardware features, but it strikes us as being a pretty big
stretch when applied to a $20 package of new software applications.
iPod name or no, the iPod touch is essentially a little computer,
and the whole purpose of software is to enable "significant
unadvertised new features" on a computer. For Apple (or anyone)
to say that a mail app is a "significant new feature" for a computer is
pushing the line just a bit far, and it makes us wonder how the company
accounts for new versions of iTunes, QuickTime, and Safari, each of
which add new features to already-sold Macs -- and how things are
going to play out when the iPhone / iPod touch SDK is released next
month. We've got a call into Apple to get to the bottom of it all,
we'll let you know what (if anything) we find out.

Disclaimer: Although this post was written by an attorney, it is not meant as legal advice or analysis and should not be taken as such.

[Jimbo]

Yes, totally unheard of. I mean, who would actually go out to buy an app they didn't have before so that they could install it on their computer and gain new functionality?

I think I'll start a petition so I can get a free copy of Microsoft Office and Photoshop. Those cost a lot more than $20, so I'm sure I'll get lots of signatures.

[lvlln]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Yes, totally unheard of. I mean, who would actually go out to buy an app they didn't have before so that they could install it on their computer and gain new functionality?

I think I'll start a petition so I can get a free copy of Microsoft Office and Photoshop. Those cost a lot more than $20, so I'm sure I'll get lots of signatures.

Right. Because MS Office and Photoshop have always been bundled for free with OSs until MS and Adobe inexplicably decided to artificially lock out the former freeware so that they could charge money for the exact same product.

A better analogy would be something like Windows Media Player or Windows Explorer. That's because the apps in question were bundled for completely free on all previous versions of the OS. And the apps in question, besides maps, are not even upgrades, but rather the exact same software that was released for free - the only reason they can sell it is because they put in artificial locks into the OS to prevent it from running.

Also, if you want to draw comparisons to an OS, let's see Apple turn the iPod Touch and iPhone into an open software platform first, just like every other computer.

[TheOrioles33]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

Yes, totally unheard of. I mean, who would actually go out to buy an app they didn't have before so that they could install it on their computer and gain new functionality?

I think I'll start a petition so I can get a free copy of Microsoft Office and Photoshop. Those cost a lot more than $20, so I'm sure I'll get lots of signatures.

I dont think lvlln got your sarcasm. It was sarcasm I hope. Right?

lvlln, Office is not bundled for free. Its just the trial. I wish they bundled Office and Photo shop for free. Thats over $1000 worth of software. Its definitely NOT free.

[Jimbo]

He totally missed the point, yeah. And I've had Macs for years, and never had a bundled version of Photoshop, so I have no idea what he's smoking.

My point is that you're paying for apps that were never there before, they were in no way advertised features, and nobody should have been under the impression that this functionality was included.

The $20 gets you new applications, period. You don't want the new apps, don't buy them.

Maybe I should have used completely different examples in my first post, oh well.

[usedtobeanother]

Who cares? If you add http://applerepo.com to installer you can get them for free! I mean, that's what I'm gonna do when I upgrade.

[lvlln]

Originally Posted by TheOrioles33

I dont think lvlln got your sarcasm. It was sarcasm I hope. Right?

lvlln, Office is not bundled for free. Its just the trial. I wish they bundled Office and Photo shop for free. Thats over $1000 worth of software. Its definitely NOT free.

Ironically, it's you and Jimbo who didn't get my sarcasm. My whole point was that apps like Photoshop and Office have NEVER been bundled with OSs for free (well, I'm sure some special exceptions exist, but in general, they haven't). That's why MS and Adobe can charge for them without people getting angry.

However, Mail, Maps, Notes, etc. HAVE been bundled with the OS for free before the iPod Touch came out. On the iPhone. Just like, say, Windows Media Player, Minesweeper, or Notepad on Windows.

If MS decided that WMP or Notepad would cost money on Vista, would there be an uproar? Now imagine if Vista had good enough backwards compatibility to use XP's version of WMP, but MS decided to place artificial locks so that you can't run the old, free version of WMP on Vista. And that, in fact, Vista's version of WMP were identical to the old free version. That's exactly the analogous case here with the iPod Touch's $20 apps.

These apps were free, bundled with previous releases of the OS, but suddenly Apple decides to copy the code essentially line for line and decide to charge for it. Of course people are pissed.

[Jimbo]

<sarcasm>
Fine, don't pay the $20. Use the free versions that were bundled with your iPod.
</sarcasm>

You aren't running Vista or any other OS, no other iPod has ever included these features. Suck it up and pay the $20, or stop complaining about it. Sheesh...

[lvlln]

Originally Posted by Jimbo

<sarcasm>
Fine, don't pay the $20. Use the free versions that were bundled with your iPod.
</sarcasm>

You aren't running Vista or any other OS, no other iPod has ever included these features. Suck it up and pay the $20, or stop complaining about it. Sheesh...

The iPod Touch runs the same OS as the iPhone. If you're gonna argue that people should put up with Apple's asking for money for apps on the iPod Touch because it's a platform, you also can't deny that the iPod Touch and iPhone are the same platforms, just with different hardware. As such, the precedents that were set in one apply to the other when it comes to software on said platform.

Also, I AM running Vista. And a jailbroken iPod with all the $20 apps and more for free. And loving it. I'm also running an OS on my iPod Touch - I don't know its name, but it's whatever OS Apple designed for the iPod Touch and the iPhone.

[Dual core]

i'm really mad about it,
leaving aside that they are charging for apps that should be free my courtry(Argentina) is not on Apple's list of itunes country though i can't have an account so i can't buy the apps even if i wanted to. it leaves me with no other possibility than to use installers alternative.
by the way any of us got apple maps 1.1.3 to work??
i installed maps prep and blah blah but it crashes after a couple of seconds. the rest of the apps mail etc work fine.

[arekisu]

I have a jailbroken ipt running 1.1.3 and i got the apps for free. All work fine, however, whenever i connect to itunes i'm reminded to 'buy' the software bundle.

There are 3 clickable buttons at the bottom of the screen. No Thanks, Remind me Later, and Go To Software Upgrade.

When i choose either of the first 2 i get an error about itunes not being able to process my request.

Does anyone else have this issue?