iPhone Application “Kill Switch” Confirmed
Posted on 11 August 2008, at 9:57 am, by Christopher Gavula
This morning, Engadget and electronista.com are reporting (apparently from a Wall Street Journal interview) that Steve Jobs has confirmed that there is, in fact, an application “kill switch” inside of the 2.x iPhone OS. I mentioned in a previous posting that I felt Apple needed to make a public statement about the kill switch rumors and apparently they now have.Â
So now we’ll get to hear from the Apple fanboys about how Apple is protecting us, from the Apple bashers how Apple is just “Big Brother” and from the MS fanboys who are bitter that MS didn’t do it first.
Oh, by the way – Apple is also reporting that 60 million apps have been downloaded for the iPhone in the first month of the app store.Â
Let the battle of protectionism vs. big brother-ism commence…
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August 11th, 2008 at 10:05 am
Definitely interested to see how this blacklist plays out.
Right now I think the biggest issue with App Store is that slow speed with which new programs and updates are added. Once they fix that I’m sure this blacklist will come to the forefront (eventually).
August 11th, 2008 at 10:14 am
Personally, I don’t think they would need a kill switch if their review process got fixed… but that’s just me.
August 11th, 2008 at 10:17 am
I suspect this won’t actually come to a head until something actually has to be shut down. Until then, there will likely be some level of concern, but no real outrage.
Even if their review process was fixed, that’s no guarantee that a “rogue” app couldn’t slip through.
My personal take is that, although this concerns me, I’m not certain that this make me mad. Apple has a controlled store in which they “approve” apps (although how much inspection happens is still up for debate). If an app went “bad” Apple would likely be blamed for not checking it before approving it. Therefore, I can’t say I blame Apple for putting in a safety mechanism to cover themselves. What I CAN be annoyed with is that they weren’t up front with the info.
August 11th, 2008 at 10:52 am
I’m actually more curious about why there is no SlingPlayer for iphone.
Is it because Apple is trying to position a revised Apple TV in that space??
Also think about how this list could possibly be used in other ways — expiring licenses, banning competing applications …
Agree that until someone is affected, this will bubble below the surface…
August 11th, 2008 at 10:53 am
“So now we’ll get to hear from the Apple fanboys about how Apple is protecting us, from the Apple bashers how Apple is just “Big Brother” and from the MS fanboys who are bitter that MS didn’t do it first.”
Gee, Chris, that’s a little pessimistic, don’t you think?
I prefer to just call it a good reason not to buy one.
August 11th, 2008 at 11:39 am
I don’t think “pessimistic” is the right word, no. Sarcastic, perhaps? Given the comments I’ve seen lately on similar stories, I think my expectations are pretty realistic.
I like the iPhone and own one (as well as a Windows Mobile based phone) and I don’t consider this a reason “not” to buy one. Clearly, however, you do. Isn’t that a bit pessimistic?
August 11th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
I prefer to call it personal preference. Programs that don’t work with a given device is (are?) one thing; a device that “kills” the app (and I’m not too fond of how that info came out, BTW) is something else entirely, I think.
After all, once you buy the item, you expect that you can use it how you wish (and no comparisons to Windows, please – there are so many Windows apps these days, it seems impossible not to find exactly what you want that will work with the big W… and none I’ve found get “killed,” either.) I guess if a person likes Apple, they’ll put up with this sort of thing. I’m not a user, and I see no reason to switch, especially if this is how Apple does things.
Not a “love” or “hate” issue for me… just easier to stay where I’m at (Moto Q) for now.
August 11th, 2008 at 1:34 pm
I think voting with your dollars is always good advice. There are things to like and things to put up with on every platform and I think you just have to pick the mix that works best for you.