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iPod touch Why 4.0 for the iPod touch will be FREE

AppleMactablet

AppleMactablet

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 25, 2010
243
23
Unlike iPhone users, iPod touch users have to pay for software update( ex. 3.0 was 9.99 then dropped to 4.99) but I have reason to believe 4.0 will be free, if you noticed that in the 4.0 demo jobs mentioned that in 4.0 there will be no more rate upon deleting, if this is not a free update user who still keep the older updates will still be asked to rate upon deleting therefore still messing up the rating system.
If 4.0 is a free update, this will fix the rating system, and will kill the old method of deleting and then rating the app.

What do you guys think?
 
I dont think Apple will forego the $9.99 or $4.99 per ipod touch owner just to remove that rating process. There will be an upgrade price sorry
 
Don't forget iAd

The better reason for apple not to charge for 4.0 is iAd. Apple wants to be able to say to its advertisers that they aren't limiting exposure to only those who pay for an upgrade. ;)
 
Or they could just release a different, stripped down firmware for people who don't want to pay. And it is possible because when 2.0 was released they did this. For iPod touch users who did not want to pay for 2.0 they had a different firmware for them (1.1.5 I believe but I'm not 100% sure) and it included all the bug fixes that 2.0 had but not the App Store or anything.
 
Why 4.0 for the iPod touch will NOT be FREE

It would be illegal for Apple to offer it for free. The end.

There are several threads in this sub-forum about this. Read up on them, they explain why Apple can't legally offer the OS update for free on the iPod Touch.
 
AppleMactablet said:
If 4.0 is a free update, this will fix the rating system, and will kill the old method of deleting and then rating the app.
Click to expand...
There is no need for 4.0 to fix the rating system. They simply need some update to not show the rating popup. This however does not resolve the problem because a lot of people keep with the old version of the software. The most likely thing that will happen is the app store disregarding the rating. You still have to popup, you still can send the rating but the app store won't do anything with it. It is the most easiest and "watertight" way of fixing the rating system.
 
I'm with rwilliams and dyn. Apple never passes up easy money so I'm sure they will find a way. They must know that some people whose devices are not fully supported arn't going to give them ten dollars if they cannot get the most out of OS 4.0. I'm included as long as I can run my apps and play music I will stay with 3.0 as long as I can.
 
iThinkergoiMac said:
It would be illegal for Apple to offer it for free.
Click to expand...

Yup, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act prevents them from giving OS 4.0 away

It is an older article referring to the 802.11n capability of early MacBooks, but it still applies here. From Ars Technica

"The reason: the Core 2 Duo Macs weren’t advertised as 802.11n-ready, and a little law called the Sarbanes-Oxley Act supposedly prohibits Apple from giving away an unadvertised new feature for one of its products. Hence, said the Apple rep, the company’s not distributing new features in Software Update any more, just bug fixes. Because of Sarbanes-Oxley.

Because of the Act, the company believes that if it sells a product, then later adds a feature to that product, it can be held liable for improper accounting if it recognizes revenue from the product at the time of sale, given that it hasn’t finished delivering the product at that point."
 
There were also many bits of commentary, including from finance lawyers, stating that Apple's claim that SOX was the reason they charged is a spurious argument, at best.

In addition, the accounting laws were changed, and Apple changed the way revenue is measured in response. So now they are perfectly capable of giving away OS upgrades for free, if they really feel like it.

But they won't. "Rate on delete" is a very strange reason for them to do a free upgrade. Even iAd is questionable. Recent web browsing stats show that the vast majority of iPhoneOS users, including iPod touch users, are on 3.x right now. And the people who are still on 2.x or 1.x are likely the people who wouldn't upgrade anyway, even if it were free.
 
Well this is no problem to me as I can hear ytou laughing now (!!) I jsut downloade the firmware and updatged it. BNo0 probnlem there, apple did notlk find outj and then firmware is liker woooopowo you crazyh ipod!
there is nothing to restr4ict me and others ;ike me from just downloadig a file on the itnternet... That is just yourtube let oall tyhse tutorials through to tell youj whow to update the firmaware withoutj handing apple a big sack of cash which i like the idea of. I mean nobody has no problem there its just apple and the law ims sure they dont care at all if you get the firmware free on the web!!!1 :p:p:p:p:p
 
Haruhi said:
Well this is no problem to me as I can hear ytou laughing now (!!) I jsut downloade the firmware and updatged it. BNo0 probnlem there, apple did notlk find outj and then firmware is liker woooopowo you crazyh ipod!
there is nothing to restr4ict me and others ;ike me from just downloadig a file on the itnternet... That is just yourtube let oall tyhse tutorials through to tell youj whow to update the firmaware withoutj handing apple a big sack of cash which i like the idea of. I mean nobody has no problem there its just apple and the law ims sure they dont care at all if you get the firmware free on the web!!!1 :p:p:p:p:p
Click to expand...


This is why you should stay in school, kids.
 
iThinkergoiMac said:
It would be illegal for Apple to offer it for free. The end.

There are several threads in this sub-forum about this. Read up on them, they explain why Apple can't legally offer the OS update for free on the iPod Touch.
Click to expand...

emaja said:
Yup, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act prevents them from giving OS 4.0 away

It is an older article referring to the 802.11n capability of early MacBooks, but it still applies here. From Ars Technica

"The reason: the Core 2 Duo Macs weren’t advertised as 802.11n-ready, and a little law called the Sarbanes-Oxley Act supposedly prohibits Apple from giving away an unadvertised new feature for one of its products. Hence, said the Apple rep, the company’s not distributing new features in Software Update any more, just bug fixes. Because of Sarbanes-Oxley.

Because of the Act, the company believes that if it sells a product, then later adds a feature to that product, it can be held liable for improper accounting if it recognizes revenue from the product at the time of sale, given that it hasn’t finished delivering the product at that point."
Click to expand...

It was never illegal to give the update away for free with the iPod Touch. There were just accounting implications that Apple wanted to avoid in order to maintain consistency in the way that iPod revenue was recognized in their financial statements.

Recent changes to accounting standards minimize the impact of accounting for the delivery of additional features. Apple may or may not charge for the next update, but they no longer have the same accounting issues.
 
Apple will make iPod touch owners pay for the updates. Something that has always irked me is how cheap some people are. Apple's upgrades aren't expensive, it's just 10 bucks. Chances are, if you can afford a $200+ iPod, you can afford $10 every year or so for new software.

iPhone owners already paid for their software, through their monthly payments to whichever carrier they use. There's a portion of their payment that goes to Apple for R&D.

iPad owners just got their devices starting from April 3 and many companies offer a grace period, like 120 days or something for a free upgrade for people who bought their software within that grace period. I know Adobe did this for CS4/5. A number of smaller software companies do this, and also Microsoft lol.
 
SnowLeopard2008 said:
Apple will make iPod touch owners pay for the updates. Something that has always irked me is how cheap some people are. Apple's upgrades aren't expensive, it's just 10 bucks. Chances are, if you can afford a $200+ iPod, you can afford $10 every year or so for new software.
Click to expand...

I'm not complaining. I've paid for every update and I'm just throwing this out there, but the $10 every year adds up. I paid for the January Software Update($20) which added Mail, Maps, Notes, Stocks, and Weather to the iPod Touch. I paid for 2.0($10) and I paid for 3.0 ($10). So all-in-all that's $40 just in updates. The only thing I'm going to say about 4.0 is that I hope it's cheaper for the 2G. If the 2g is getting a stripped down version of 4.0, then it should have a stripped down price. Although, I know I'm going to buy it either way.
 
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