The Free Software Foundation are a non profit organisation dedicated to the promotion of Free Software. Not ‘free’ – as in ‘free gift’, mind you, ‘Free’ – as in Freedom. The FSF believe that software and computer systems should be open and that once you own a device or a bit of code you should be able to use it or modify it as you see fit.
They have taken a look at the new iPhone 3G and they are less than pleased. Once you look past the shiny exterior and the undoubtedly well designed interface, they say, all that is left is a locked down device over which you have no real control.
Here are the FSF’s main objections:
- The iPhone supports and endorses Digital Rights Management (DRM) to restrict what you can do with your own music.
- The iPhone can be used to record and track your location
- Only authorised software can be loaded onto the iPhone and free software developers must pay to have apps appear on the App Store
- Patent or DRM-free media formats like Ogg Vorbis are not supported
- Better alternatives exist – like the OpenMoko - that have none of the above restrictions
Some of those points are easy to argue with. The OpenMoko is only ‘better’ than the iPhone in terms of its openness. Apart from that it is merely an extremely niche 2G phone with a slightly ropey GUI and a ‘handy’ command line. It is nice that it exists, but the iPhone is a much better constructed and well-thought-out device on many levels.
Similarly, the patent-free argument applies mainly to MP3 tracks. It is true that MP3 is a patent-protected format and that there are many sound technical and ideological reasons why the patent-free Ogg Vorbis format is superior but – in practical terms – MP3 has won and the argument is essentially over. Too many people now own MP3 players and music in MP3 format for Ogg to make much of a dent at this point.
That bit about the software, though? They have a definite point. Even other proprietary platforms like Symbian are home to a wealth of applications and – crucially – they don’t need to be ‘approved’ by the phone manufacturers in order to be released. So far there is only one VoIP app for the iPhone – Truphone – and that is far more restricted than other apps like Fring or Skype that might pose a minor theat to sombody’s business model.
What do you think? Are you happy with the App Store or do you yearn for freedom?
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About Stuart Houghton
Nice article. Not many bloggers understand issues concerning Steve’s business practices behind the Iphone. OS X on the Iphone is superb for creating excellent applications but Jobs has it locked down.
Well Apple is in something of a quandary over the App Store. They want to make the process of acquiring apps as easy as possible, and it looks like they’ve achieved that in way that no-one has managed before. They also want to make it possible for anyone that wants to to develop apps for the iPhone.
I think the installation and deletion of apps on your phone is a key part of the ease of use they’ve achieved, but this does mean that apps are only available via one channel. It would be harder, but by no means impossible, for Apple to develop a way to allow people to reliably and safely download and install apps from any source on the internet. It’s worth bearing in mind, though, that when you’re dealing with phone users you’re not necessarily talking about people who are comfortable with all the ins and outs of internet downloads, and the possible security risks of viruses, etc. Being able to download safe, Apple-approved apps directly on the phone is a major usability win for the iPhone. (The “enterprise” features of the iPhone already allow organisations to write and internally distribute their own apps, incidentally.)
Also given that they are distributing these apps through their own iTunes branded store, Apple wants to retain final say over what they offer, as in the minds of many users there will inevitably be a close association between the apps they download and the Apple brand. Apple would not want to be associated with porn, gambling and whatever else they deem to be unsavoury. This seems reasonable enough.
The other side to that coin, of course, is that Apple can exclude app developers that they just don’t like, or that they consider to be a threat in some way. I’m not sure there’s any evidence at this stage that they’re doing this, though.
And should developers have to pay £59 to get their apps into the App Store? Well you do get something for your money, namely Apple will host the app, provide the bandwidth for people to download it, and if you do want to change for it, handle the payment processing. Perhaps, though, there should be a way for people who do not want to charge for their app to be allowed to get them into the store for free. It’s worth noting that the tools to develop iPhone apps are available for free, though – this may not be true on other platforms (I don’t know).