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No More 'Free' iOS Apple Store Apps

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Apple has followed Google's lead in reacting to the European Commission's concerns over the labelling of smartphone applications that are free to download, but include in-app purchases that mean the titles are not free for the lifetime of the application.

Previously apps that were free to download from the iOS and Mac App Stores were labelled 'free'. The button to trigger the download now reads 'get'. To be clear, there is no change in the operation of the button, no app or game has been deleted, just the language has been tweaked. The word 'free' has powerful connotations, and while it would be strictly correct to say 'free' as the short-form of 'free to download, with in-app purchases available', the European Commission was not happy with the labelling of freemium apps as free, in what could be seen as a bait and switch model.

Even though the freemium model of 'free at the point of download' is the dominant business model (2013 saw 92% of iOS revenue and 98% of Google Play revenue come from freemium-based titles), critics argue that the titles are geared towards bringing people in for free and then designing the gaming model to induce a purchase.

Whether this is fairer than a clearly defined demo version with a hard-stop ending that says 'pay now to continue' continues to be a point of debate, but developers are simply going where the money is.

The four principles that the European Commission relayed to Google, Apple, and the Interactive Software Federation of Europe, last year were as follows:

  1. Games advertised as "free" should not mislead consumers about the true costs involved;
  2. Games should not contain direct exhortation to children to buy items in a game or to persuade an adult to buy items for them;
  3. Consumers should be adequately informed about the payment arrangements for purchases and should not be debited through default settings without consumers’ explicit consent;
  4. Traders should provide an email address so that consumers can contact them in case of queries or complaints.

(Read the full European Commission report here).

Over the summer months of 2014, Google removed the 'free' tag from apps that included in-app purchasing and put in place a number of other changes including the requirement that every IAP would require authorization by the user. It also provided clearer communications on the standards expected from developers who advertise IAPs in an app.

Strictly speaking the change is only required in the EU, but Apple has implemented the change from 'free' to 'get' worldwide (reports Re/Code), although 'free' remains in the name of many top lists (such as ' Top Free Apps for iPhone').

It remains to be seen if this small change will change app download habits. Personally I think that app download rates will be unaffected, but user satisfaction will rise slightly because mental expectations will now be more in line with the reality of the situation. Developers and publishers need to be paid, and there is nothing wrong in making it clear that an app is not 'free' when over the lifetime of the app you are expected to make a payment.