=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
This E-mail is Sponsored by: Small Dog Electronics
--> Specializing in New & Factory Refurbished Apple computers <--
Surf to <http://www.smalldog.com> Check out our daily specials!
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
http://www.insanely-great.com/news.php?id=1468
Op-Ed: Should You Pay for iApps?
By Remy Davison, Insanely Great Mac
January 5th 2003
The end of free software as we know it.
Bait. Switch.
As Apple looks for "alternative revenue sources", that looks like you. And me.
Credible sources have reported that CEO Jobs will announce that 'some' iApps will no
longer be free come Tuesday. These may include iDVD, iPhoto and iMovie.
The question is, do these sell Macs? Most users wouild argue an pverwhelming 'yes'. PC
reviewers have almost unanimously praised the slew of iApps bundled with every Mac.
For beginners and seasoned users alike, there's nothing like the intuitiveness,
user-friendliness and polish of iMovie, iDVD, iTunes and iPhoto.
Remember Claris Em@iler? I still use it in Classic as I've found nothing out there to
match its feature set. It was about $49, but people stayed away in droves. There were
too many free alternatives out there.
Now if Jobs does do a dot Mac to the iApps, we'd predict the take-up rate will be
about as lousy as Apple's online service. And the piracy rate would go up as well. But
would you pay for the extra features Apple will inevitably introduce into the iApps?
Would that make them worthwhile investments?
For instance, if iDVD were to work on all external DVD burners, not just Apple
internal drives, would that encourage you to shell out 50 bucks for an iApps bundle?
Or an iMovie that could send your videos to VideoCD without having to spend up on
Toast or Discribe? What about a PhotoCD-burning iPhoto?
But how might pay-as-you-go iApps work? Apple surely couldn't conceivably sell, say, a
DVD-R eMac without iDVD - could they?
If this proves the case, two scenarios emerge: Apple will have opened the door for
third-party developers; and retailers will compete with free iApp bundles with their
Macs.
There's another problem here: Windows.
If you opt for a DVD burning Windows box, there's no shortage of free applications out
there. Sure, you have to bother to go to download.com or somewhere, but the number of
freeware tools - some half-finished, some very polished - is staggering in its
breadth. Whatever you want to do to an MPEG file, it's out there.
It may not be iMovie or iDVD, but, heck, it's free, so you can't complain about the
price.
Ah, the price. Now isn't the software bundle part of the premium we pay for using a
Mac? We could buy $600 Dells, but we don't. We pay $1,199 (or whatever) for the full
box and dice.
When you buy a Mac, you expect a complete pacakge. In the early 1990s, Apple used to
boast that, unlike Windows, you didn't need to find or buy drivers. Everything -
Ethernet drivers, LocalTalk drivers, video drivers - were all built-in.
Claris/AppleWorks were there. The original iMac sold - at least partly - on its superb
software bundle, which included AppleWorks, Quicken, games and - later - iMovie.
Appleworks, iTunes and (presumably) DiscBurner. That's it. Forget iCal and iSync; they
don't register in the public's mind. Meanwhile, iMovie is a household name and people
really do want it.
But enough to pay 50 bucks to fatten out their suddenly somewhat-bereft hard drive? I
doubt it. Would you pay for them? If so, how much would you be prepared to spend?
=-=-=
Web links for articles available on Web site version. Please refer to Web site version
for all revisions, corrections and updates.
Post comments to this article and view reader comments at the Web site. Web site
version of this article can be viewed at:
http://www.insanely-great.com/news.php?id=1468
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Copyright (c) 2002 Insanely Great Mac. All rights reserved. This article
may not be republished in part or whole without explicit written
permission from Insanely Great Mac.
Brought to you by Insanely Great Mac <http://www.insanely-great.com/>
Please visit <http://www.insanely-great.com/macnews.php> to manage your
subscription (Subscribe, Digest Switch, Unsubscribe).
Subscription problems/questions please email [EMAIL PROTECTED]
