IAP, Trialware, etc

[Dan_Knight]

Greetings all,

I've become a little annoyed - but not terribly so - by apps and games that are posted in iTunes as if they were full games for free. Only once they're installed does the user discover that what you got is just a sample, and in order to get the entire program, you need to make an in-app purchase for the "full" or "pro" version.

What ever happened to actually divulging that the app in question is only a demo? And what ever happened to just putting the full version for sale on iTunes?

I thought Apple had this strict policy with regard to what is publishable? Is this the developers' way around their strict process of approval? Just publish a stub and then have the user buy the real application from within? Is this against Apple's policy?

I can only speak for myself, but I prefer all my purchases to go through Apple.

Thoughts?

 

[twerppoet]

All your purchases go through Apple, even the in-app purchases.

Most apps mention that they are limited in the description (though not always in the big text at the top or in plain speach). I believe Apple only has polices against deliberately misleading descriptions and out and out lies, and they are probably not as strict with apps that are for free. Given how hard it can be to judge this kind of thing (and developers can change their descriptions), it's probably seldom enforced until customers complain.

A quick way to check if there are in-app purchases is to look in the left column of the Apps description; where it will list Top In-App Purchases.