Apple changed its mind about third party software being used on the Apple iPhone. Previously, Apple was very adamant about not allowing any software not created by the company to be used with the iPhone. Now it seems that Apple has taken an about face on the issue.
On Wednesday, Steve Jobs posted a message to his website saying that Apple will now allow those third party application to work with the iPhone.
Many users downloaded software from the Internet for their iPhones, taking the risk that installing the programs would not damage their iPhones. If it did, the warranty from Apple would not cover any related issues.
Before the okay, Apple controlled the allowed applications by releasing a software update in September that included code to disable any software installed on the iPhone that originated from a third party, a company or individual that was not Apple. This made many software developers angry, as well as some iPhone users.
Apple did allow developers to create programs that would run through the Apple Safari web browser, but blocked any programs that would work on the iPhone software platform directly.
Apple now intends to allow third party software, and will release a software development kit sometime in February. The kit will help software developers create programs that will work on both the Apple iPhone and the new Apple iPod Touch.
In his website posting, Jobs said: “We are excited about creating a vibrant third-party developer community around the iPhone and enabling hundreds of new applications for our users.”
Along with the third party software restriction in that earlier update, was an update to disable phones that were “unlocked” by users to work on other carrier networks. There are no plans from Apple to release the iPhone to other carriers, so it is unlikely that Apple will allow any “unlocked” phones to function at this time.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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