There’s No Such Thing as a Free App
There’s been quite a bit of fretting lately over the ease with which in-app purchases can be made while playing games on the iPhone and iPad, particularly when it comes to children’s games. Some irate parents, whose children unwittingly ran up huge credit card bills, have pointed a pious finger at Apple, some threatening to boycott all items in the iTunes platform because of what they see as Apple’s "unscrupulous business practices." And a few members of Congress even took the step of asking the FTC to investigate the deceptive nature of these insidious little impulse items.
But hold on there just one minute.
The free or low-cost "trial size" offer has been a staple of promotional marketing as long as man has had goods and services for sale or barter, and in our culture of abundance, the idea of luring customers with a free sample is not only time-honored but often necessary.
I wonder if the folks complaining about the availability to purchase upgrades or special functions within a free or low-cost app have any idea how much time and effort, and therefore money, goes into its initial creation. To borrow from an old phrase, there’s really no such thing as a free app.
Furthermore, while it’s clear that some practices are more ethical than others, and it’s equally clear than anyone offering a $100 wagon of anything to a four-year-old is only in it for the money, the truth is the same now as it ever was: Parents bear the responsibility of keeping their children away from those things that children shouldn’t have, like car keys or medications or guns or credit card information, because they are either dangerous or expensive or both. If your child drinks your 200-year-old single malt Scotch, or even pours it down the drain for that matter, is it the distiller’s fault because he put a pretty picture on the bottle label? Heavens, no.
Nor is it Apple’s fault when your child uses your credit card information to purchase electronic whatnots. It would be easier to empathize with parents whose children are spending hundreds of dollars on these purchases if it weren’t so easy to do something about it. But the fact is, consumers already have a boatload of rights where Apple is concerned.
Parents, you have the right to disable the in-app purchase function of your iPhone or iPad. You have the right to enter your credit card information each time you make a purchase, rather than asking Apple to store it for you. You have the right to demand that your password be entered each time a purchase is made. You have the right to keep your iTunes password a secret, even from your children. You have the right to change your password if you think someone knows it. You have the right to monitor your child’s playing, viewing, and spending. You even have the right to keep your mobile devices to yourself and hand your child a book, a jump rope, or a pad or paper and a box of crayons.