FreeMyApps - Scam or not?

[irDigital0l]

Anyone heard/use this?

Some people are calling a scam and Im a little wary, but I gave it a try and so far I haven't noticed anything fishy. Basically you go on the site http://www.freemyapps.com/ on your iPhone and it asks you for permission for your UDID (different from your apple account ID). UDID are also used if you ever beta tested an iOS game.

Anyway I found this through http://www.pocketgamer.co.uk/r/iPhon...ws.asp?c=36017 but I still didn't really believe it so I searched it up on google and AllThingsDigital had an article about it http://allthingsd.com/20111213/freem...g-within-apps/ .

So basically what you have to do is download free apps/games and then wait open it and wait 30 secs, then go back to the site and it'll add up points. When you have enough points, you can redeem them for a paid app/game. It does it through a code (like any code you redeem on the itunes store).

To my surprise I got Cut the Rope Experiment for free (checked my account, nothing seemed wrong, it shows free in my history). Got Fruit Ninja Puss in Boots and Bejeweled as well.

Still being cautious, but I've read on multiple forums that its also working. Im thinking of restoring my iphone to a earlier backup just to make sure the thing downloaded is gone.

[Thetonyk123]

I tried something like this, It told me to download textnow and try it for 30 seconds. Then I got nba jam for free. It does not have all apps though.

[irDigital0l]

(computer name) > appdata > roaming > apple computer > mobiledevice > provisioning profiles

Just deleted the prov profile

[markyr17]

It's not a scam it works.

[SporkLover]

I used it to get gta3. The profile installed doesn't seem to be persistent.

[DroidRules]

LoL.... typically you don't get anything for free so think about it.

[dehory]

Looks and works like it's legit.

You are, of course, not getting something for nothing. To earn enough credits for a $1 app, you might have to spend 10 minutes downloading and opening apps. Whether it's worth the hassle could be up for debate, but the quality of the gift apps they're offering (Infinity Blade II, Plants vs Zombies, etc.) is undeniable.

[andyprit]

Pretty sure it's legit, but the voucher codes only work for US iTunes accounts.

[jonter19]

This seems to be legit. Used it to get GTA3 for free.

Obviously, I had to spend a lot of time downloading apps (some over 100mb) and opening them, but in the scope of everything it was worth it to get a $5 game for free.

[mcorner]

Definitely not a scam of any sort.

How would I know? I work there

There are quite a few news stories, but Gigaom is as good as any:
http://gigaom.com/2011/12/13/fiksu-l...app-downloads/

[psonice]

It's not a scam, I can tell you how it works.

First, you download their profile. This lets them track if you've run the apps or not. There may be some risk involved here, I'll come back to that in a bit.

Next, you download their 'sponsor apps'. All you have to do is open them, leave them running for 30 seconds, then go back to the site. So long as you do that you get the credits which you can later spend on an app.

Finally you have enough credits, and they buy an app for you (and send it to you as a gift, this is what the code is).

So, the question is - why are they buying apps for you? That's the interesting bit to me. Lets see where the money flows and who actually gains here:

First, the money is coming from the developers behind the sponsor apps. They might pay $1 (random guess) to freemyapps for you to download their app. Why? For a chance to get your eyeballs on their app for 30s? That's part of it but not the real reason.

Mostly they're buying a position in the charts. If they pay $1000 for 1000 downloads, that means in a day or so they'll get 1000 new customers downloading their app. That moves their app up the chart, and being high up the chart is the best way to get your app in front of people. Buying 1000 downloads might mean you get 5000 *real* downloads from actual customers. This is good marketing for free apps (free as in they want you to buy something in-app usually).

So, the money comes from the sponsors. Freemyapps take a cut, of course. The rest is spent on your app at the end. The sponsors get good marketing, freemyapps make money, you get free apps - everyone wins, right?

Well, no. Problem is the sponsor apps are effectively buying a position high in the chart. This is bad for the store, because bad apps can end up higher up in the chart than good apps. People then miss the good apps and buy the bad ones. It can happen the other way of course, but from my experience this is often the way it goes.

Think about it this way: would you prefer a chart based on real users, where apps that people recommend get downloaded more, or one where companies buy their way to the top and the top 25 apps might be utter garbage? That's why apple banned incentivised app sales, and I suspect this will get blocked at some point for the same reason.

[Calidude]

It's not a scam. It's legit. It's been profiled many times on reputable websites and many people here have tried it.

Also, to those complaining about the charts being affected...does it really matter? Sometimes we have stupid fart apps up there simply because most people are very dumb. All you need to do is read the reviews both on the store and on review sites and Youtube to decide what is good and what is not.

[DMunky168]

I tried getting Camera+ (I had enough credit) but then I get the message "This redeem code is only for the USA iTunes store" or something among those lines. So are the free apps only applicable to the US iTune? (I'm from Canada)

[LSUtigers03]

How often do they update the apps you download for credit?

[irDigital0l]

Originally Posted by DMunky168

I tried getting Camera+ (I had enough credit) but then I get the message "This redeem code is only for the USA iTunes store" or something among those lines. So are the free apps only applicable to the US iTune? (I'm from Canada)

Its only available to US right now, they said there adding more countries soon.

Yea I was just curious because some people have been saying that people can use your UDID to hack into your account but I dont think thats true.

[Jmclark]

Originally Posted by DMunky168

I tried getting Camera+ (I had enough credit) but then I get the message "This redeem code is only for the USA iTunes store" or something among those lines. So are the free apps only applicable to the US iTune? (I'm from Canada)

Yeah, I read they're all US only.

Originally Posted by LSUtigers03

How often do they update the apps you download for credit?

I signed up about a week ago, and I had quite a few apps when I first signed up, then some the next morning, then the one after that, and then maybe a few in the past 3-4 days. But according to the site's Twitter, more apps should be coming soon, as I'd imagine since this site seems to be gaining popularity.

I've gotten Sonic CD, Tiny Wings, and Plants vs Zombies so far. So yeah, it's legit. Quick and easy way to get free apps. That is, when there are offers available for you (I don't have an iPad )

[nepalisherpa]

It works and so does App Trailers from the Appstore.

[sindekit]

Does anyone know how to delete the profile thing it makes you install?

[AbyssImpact]

Originally Posted by sindekit

Does anyone know how to delete the profile thing it makes you install?

Reset > Erase All Content and Settings

[ElCidRo]

I just spent 1300 credits to get iMovie, but I was logged in a different country account - not US.
I got the "this redeem code is available only on a US itunes account"

the credits are gone from my freemyapps balance... can I get them back, or the app?

[iohass]

installed the profile, used the US login store, downloaded two games, used for a couple minutes and still no credits

[xdbuix]

I got about 5 apps off of it. Anyone having problems getting credits, I usually restart that app and just press a few buttons here n there, n that works for me.

[Bobby.e]

The only problem then is you get all these junk apps in your download history.

[outphase]

Originally Posted by Bobby.e

The only problem then is you get all these junk apps in your download history.

That's what the hiding feature is for

[B777Forevar]

It's legit. I redeemed 10 or so apps but I just give out the codes to my friends.