I may not answer your question, but this got me to do some Googling.
Just as an FYI, here's some pointers to some information I found:
Here's an article calling for Apple to implement a try and buy scheme.
I'm just pointing this out because this isn't just an issue being
suggested by blind App Store users. There's also a demand for this
feature from the general population as well.
http://www.macgasm.net/2013/05/10/an-excellent-take-on-how-to-implement-app-store-trial-versions/
The above article points to this page where someone lays out how Apple
could implement such a try and buy scheme in the App Store. This author
doesn't think this would be too difficult to implement, and they seem to
have put a lot of thought into this design, but they're not an Apple
developer, so who really knows for sure. The comments are also
interesting and they talk about how Google Play works and even bring up
other issues discussed in this thread.
http://blog.amyworrall.com/post/42919561190/app-store-trials
This article from March of 2012 talks about how some updates in Apple's
App Store T&C's might start allowing for free trials by using in app
purchases. I guess this could address your question, and I think David
has already made this point, that app developers are now able to use in
app purchases to provide free trials.
http://www.cultofmac.com/151955/apple-hints-at-free-trials-in-the-app-store-with-new-itunes-terms-and-conditions/
This article from 2010 talks about how Apple was highlighting the free
and lite versions of paid apps in the App Store to stem the criticism of
their no try and buy or refund policy. It points out that Google Play
has a trial period, Nokia allows for trial apps and the Windows App
Store will also allow for trials.
http://www.techhive.com/article/202724/Apple_Highlights_Free_Trial_Apps_Section.html
This is an article from 2011 talking about some apparent code in iTunes
that indicates Apple would allow rentals from the App Store. This lead
to rumors that Apple would be adding a try and buy feature to the App
Store. I hesitated to include this link, but it does show that the lack
of a try and buy feature in the App Store is an issue with the wider
community of iPhone users, and it may indicate that implementing such a
feature wouldn't be as expensive or as complex as some people have implied.
http://www.idownloadblog.com/2011/10/03/app-store-trials/
I thought this article was pretty interesting. Apparently, Apple has
implemented a seven day trial for App Store apps available in Taipei
only. Apparently this is part of Taiwanese law since consumers have to
be able to touch the products they purchase before they pay for them.
Since this function has already been implemented in iTunes and the App
Store, it doesn't seem like it would be that hard for Apple to reuse
this implementation in other markets. It's also interesting to note that
Google was fined for not complying with this law.
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2011/07/15/2003508264
This is the result of a pole in 2010 where 83% of the respondents said
Apple should allow for free trials. I'm not sure this says much, because
who would be against free trials other than some app developers and
maybe Apple itself. I think this points out though that this isn't just
an issue important to blind iPhone users.
http://www.ipadforums.net/apple-ipad-polls/7658-free-trial-versions-app-store.html
Here's another call for App Store wide 24 hour free trials.
http://gizmodo.com/5605938/apple-should-enable-24+hour-trials-for-all-paid-apps
Here's another article calling for a try and buy feature in IOS 5.
http://m.imore.com/ios-5-app-store-demos-upgrades-subscriptions
I did a Google search for "trials Apple App Store" and these were all of
the articles I found on my first page related to this issue. I didn't
hold back any articles contrary to my own opinions on this issue. I'm
just sharing since I thought others interested in this issue might find
this interesting reading.
On 08/05/2013 04:33 PM, Maria and Joe Chapman wrote:
HI. there are already a lot of apps that have limited functionality unless you
buy them. Couldn't this simply be extended to more apps?
Warm regards and blessings
Maria, Joe and FurBabies
Email: iMessage:bubbygirl1...@gmail.com
On 05/08/2013, at 2:23 PM, David Chittenden <dchitten...@gmail.com> wrote:
Hello,
You completely missed my point about implementation of such a system, not to
mention the extreme complexities involved in coding it. Also, You completely
glossed over the fact that Shareware is the only model where this is typically
done. Shareware usually comes from small start-ups which are still trying to
get their names out, and by hobbyists. Successful companies usually do not use
shareware for reasons of piracy.
Shareware programs can, and are, cracked so people can use them without paying
for them. Companies and developers which make and sell shareware do not earn
very much money from the shareware because it is so easily and readily cracked.
So, let's consider Apple App Store with such a distribution method. If you
never jailbreak your iOS device, the system will probably work decently well,
except that a good hacker may be able to open the app's shell and tinker with
its timing factor. If the app cannot receive the accurate time from the phone,
it can always believe it is still in the 24 hour free trial time. I knew a
person back in the US who did this with all his trial programs on his Mac. He
was a low paid movie producer, but liked Adobe's editing, so he cracked adobe
video editor to use it without paying the several hundred dollar licensing fee
/ purchase price.
If you jailbreak your iPhone, the jailbreak community would quickly develop an
app that would enfold any App Store app and constantly show the time/date stamp
which makes the app believe it is still in its trial phase. To do this, no app
would need to be hacked, just intercept the day/time query from the app and
send back the original day of download. This is a basic program I could
probably write with just a little bit of study.
And, before you say blind people are mostly honest and would never do such a
thing, even if true, and I would question such an assertion, we are less than
0.5% of the population, and probably less than that of the percent of people
who use iPhones and iPhone apps. These, and other similar questions must be
answered to developers' satisfaction before developers would feel secure in
agreeing to such a scheme with significant possibility of piracy and abuse.
In other words, our desires are not the only factors that need to be considered.
David Chittenden, MSc, MRCAA
Email: dchitten...@gmail.com
Mobile: +64 21 2288 288
Sent from my iPhone
On 05/08/2013, at 11:33, Christopher Chaltain <chalt...@gmail.com> wrote:
I don't think this is very analogous. When you purchase a meal, it's to enjoy
it that one dining experience. If you don't like the food then you can
complain. You may or may not get some consideration on the bill, and this has
nothing to do with blindness.
When you purchase an app, it's generally to use it for a while, and not just
one time. Plenty of companies and apps have very successful business models
where you can download an application, try it for a week or a month and then
purchase it or it stops working. This is not a new concept, and as David has
said, could be implemented in the App Store with in app purchases.
Finally, enjoying the taste of a meal and the dining experience has nothing to
do with sight or blindness, and is pretty trivial when compared to the needed
accessibility to use an app.
On 08/04/2013 06:20 PM, Joanne Chua wrote:
Hi,
This arguement reminds me of something along the line of...
lets go to the restarant, lets order some food, eat it, then decide if
you like the food or not to determine if you pay for the food or not.
Reason? well, because i'm blind, i have the rights to taste the food. If
it is not suiting my taste, i'll decide not too pay...
Joanne Shuang Chua
Leaders For Tomorrow 2013 Candidate
Send from my iPad
On 05/08/2013, at 8:42, Maria and Joe Chapman <bubbygirl1...@gmail.com
<mailto:bubbygirl1...@gmail.com>> wrote:
Hi. I was thinking more along the lines of the app could be
downloaded and is fully functional for a day unless you purchase a key
on the mac or do an in app purchase on the iphone. Some apps can be
rather expensive, I would not be willing to buy a 10 or 20 dollar app
I could not use and probably wouldn't unless I had heard it was at
least usable in some way with voice over. How many apps I wonder are
not discovered to be accessible because people are afraid to buy them
in case they are not usable?
regards
Maria and crew from australia
email:
bubbygirl1...@gmail.com <mailto:bubbygirl1...@gmail.com>
check out
www.95-the-mix.com <http://www.95-the-mix.com>
where we play lots of great music
On 05/08/2013, at 9:01 AM, David Chittenden <dchitten...@gmail.com
<mailto:dchitten...@gmail.com>> wrote:
I would rather not give Apple complete access to my phone just so
they can occasionally check to ensure I am not pirating apps.
David Chittenden, MSc, MRCAA
Email: dchitten...@gmail.com <mailto:dchitten...@gmail.com>
Mobile: +64 21 2288 288
Sent from my iPhone
On 05/08/2013, at 10:41, Maria and Joe Chapman
<bubbygirl1...@gmail.com <mailto:bubbygirl1...@gmail.com>> wrote:
HI. wouldn't it work better if all apps could be downloaded for
free and trialled say for a day? There are lots of apps I'd love to
try but am hesitant to download due to the fact that there is really
no way to tell if they are accessible or not unless someone on list
or someone on applevis has tried them. I mean if it's a 99 c app
it's not that bad but if it's 5 or 10 bucks? That's going to get
expensive.
Warm regards and blessings
Maria, Joe and FurBabies
Email: iMessage:bubbygirl1...@gmail.com <http://gmail.com/>
On 03/08/2013, at 6:02 PM, Arnold Schmidt <arno...@mindspring.com
<mailto:arno...@mindspring.com>> wrote:
As I state in another message, I would be much more willing to
support a general refund policy, such as Google has, or at least
use to have, rather than an it won't work with VoiceOver policy.
That is just too open to abuse. Besides, a general refund policy
would be an even better way to let developers know if people didn't
like their app, a bunch of them all requested refunds. It might
even improve accessibility.
Arnold Schmidt
----- Original Message -----
*From:*Cara Quinn <mailto:modelc...@gmail.com>
*To:*viphone@googlegroups.com <mailto:viphone@googlegroups.com>
*Sent:*Saturday, August 03, 2013 2:58 AM
*Subject:*Re: Bad experience with iTunes Store support
regarding app refund
Sieghard and All,
Let me encourage you and actually everyone on this list to
write Apple Accessibility to request that there be reasonable
accommodation in place for VoiceOver users to receive app
refunds in cases like Sieghard's. I'd also suggest that
Sieghard's note be attached to your own.
I believe this issue needs to be brought into the forefront in
a positive and decisive way. We are almost 2000 people on this
list and this is a very good opportunity to make this point heard.
This discussion has come up before of being alerted of VO
accessibility ahead of time in the App Store and though we've
not come to a set conclusion on the best way to do this, having
some indication that an app has been found to be accessible to
some degree with VoiceOver before we purchase it is a
completely reasonable request. If this is not possible, then it
is more than reasonable to ask for refunds if we cannot use an
app which is not accessible to us with the available Apple
universal access paradigm.
the email address for Apple Accessibility is:
accessibil...@apple.com <mailto:accessibil...@apple.com>
These are very caring people so please keep this in mind when
you write. I've known some of them personally. They want to
help though there may not be a clear way of making this happen
just yet. Just let them know this is important though. Make
your voice heard in a friendly way. they will listen to you
even if they do not know the best answer yet. :)
Thanks All, for your time.
Sincerely,
Cara :)
On Aug 1, 2013, at 11:09 PM, Sieghard Weitzel <siegh...@live.ca
<mailto:siegh...@live.ca>> wrote:
Hello List,
Requesting a refund for an app which turns out not to work with
Voiceover has come up a few times and the iTunes Store support
email has been posted in connection with that. So I thought I
post my recent experience with contacting iTunes Store support
via their email.
I had bought a couple of package tracking apps in order to find
out which one I liked best. I have been using Track This which
is awesome, but I am in Canada and for some reason they don’t
support Purolator and CanPar which are both major carriers
here. I contacted Track This support twice and never received a
reply.
Anyhow, back to iTunes Store support. I provided all the
information including order numbers, purchase date, my Apple Id
etc. I explained how I really enjoyed my iPhone and the
fantastic accessibility, but that unfortunately these two apps
I purchased were not voiceover friendly and there was no Light
version offered which I could have tried first. I also
mentioned that I contacted both developers and after almost a
week had not received a reply. In short, I was friendly,
explained everything and even waited to see if the developers
would reply to see if they were willing to make Voiceover
improvements.
I received a prompt reply in which the agent explained that all
app sales are final, but that given the situation they would
refund me the $6.72 or whatever it was for the 2 apps. However,
she also continued to give me links as to their terms and
conditions and said that this was a one-time curtocy and that
in the future they could not provide any more refunds and that
it was up to me to make sure I didn’t turn on one-click
ordering and accidently purchase apps or read the app
description to be sure it was what I wanted. It was strange
because all of this gave me the impression this person did not
at all get the point about Voiceover and all that, but on the
other hand she said they would give me a refund given the
situation. According to what she said I should see the refund
back on my account within 48 hours and since both apps were
purchased using store credit it would come back as store
credit. This is now 2 weeks ago and I replied twice to the
initial message to explain that I still had not received the
credit and I am getting no more replies.
I guess what I want to say here is that those who have done
this and received refunds are lucky, but it appears one should
definitely not count on getting a refund even if an app turns
out not to work with Voiceover. I certainly will not buy an app
again thinking I might as well try it because if it doesn’t
work I can always ask for a refund.
Regards,
Sieghard
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