10-23-2009, 01:40 PM

Yeah this one makes me say WTF apple, really do you really need to go that low.

Source

10-23-2009, 02:24 PM

Originally Posted by gagnerants

Yeah this one makes me say WTF apple, really do you really need to go that low.

Source

Many many companies are always trying to get patents on things, or get specific brand related attributes trademarked...it's called "barriers to competition"....and it helps protect "intellectual properties".

Just like what happened when the Mac OS was basically copied to a certain degree when Windows was first written & introduced. Apple was not legally protected as much as they could have been...and thus Apple lost the lawsuit when they challenged Microsoft as to the many similarities between the Mac OS & the Windows OS back in the mid-80's.

If you got "burned" like that...you would want to protect yourself as well!

- Nick

10-23-2009, 02:43 PM

I understand the reasoning to protect their stuff from others, but if any operating system was to do advertising on the system, ie popup for iWork software, that would make me want to drop that OS in op of someone who does not.

10-23-2009, 02:46 PM

Is stops your work while the ad plays? No way. I hope this article is wrong or being taken wrong. No one is going to stop my work.

10-23-2009, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by gagnerants

I understand the reasoning to protect their stuff from others, but if any operating system was to do advertising on the system, ie popup for iWork software, that would make me want to drop that OS in op of someone who does not.

In my post above, I was primarily responding to why companies apply for patents.

But reading the article you mentioned...I agree with you (if I read the article correctly)...that Apple wants to broaden where & how they insert advertising. Which basically means more irritating "pop-ups" for us to deal with!

This would certainly not be an "experience" improvement for the end users!

- Nick

10-23-2009, 02:54 PM

Nick, I read it very carefully and it even said the ads would stop the OS from responding till they were completed. Can you imagine playing a song and having it freeze while this ad plays or even more important, right in the middle of an important job and you have to pause while the ad plays.

I am hoping someone got something wrong.

10-23-2009, 03:17 PM

I can definitely see this coming to something like a "pay as you go" iPhone.
Let's say AT&T wants to add an iPhone option to their GoPhone program.
Well, the cost of the phone would have to drop considerably or nobody would want it and in an effort to recoup the cost, advertisers pay to pick up the slack.

The GoPhone iPhones would have all of the functionality of a standard iPhone, but they would also be the only ones with the "special" version of the OS that runs the advertisements. The ads would run periodically here and there.
If you run out of minutes or paid time, then the ads would run full time until you put more cash in the account.

It's the price one would pay for having a super-fancy iPhone at the fraction of the cost.

10-23-2009, 03:18 PM

I don't think this is created to run on every OS, I think it's only for specific items such as netbooks and smartphones to lower their unit price or their monthly service price. It reminds me of those free internet providers that make you watch add every now and then. It might offer good deals on whatever they introduce

10-23-2009, 03:20 PM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

Nick, I read it very carefully and it even said the ads would stop the OS from responding till they were completed. Can you imagine playing a song and having it freeze while this ad plays or even more important, right in the middle of an important job and you have to pause while the ad plays.

I am hoping someone got something wrong.

Yes...that would be very very irritating!

I was actually thinking about this...and thinking how could this sort of advertising to "taken to the next level"...since the advertising would or could be OS based & not just application based.

Give this theory a "whirl":

If you're in Safari browsing the internet, you get hit with various "pop-ups" to close or have to suffer through 15 seconds of some sort of advert. before you can actually see the webpage content.

If this patent Apple is seeking is OS based...what if the advertising wasn't limited to an application like Safari...but because many of us are connected to the internet 24-7 via cable modem or DSL...we could get hit with pop-ups while we are in the middle of:

- working on a word processing document
- excel spreadsheet
- playing a hard drive based game (not an MMORPG)
- viewing of personal photos
- computer maintenance.

This would certainly be an invasion of privacy of some sort (I would think)...but then this could be compared to the automatic software update notices we already get hit with at various times (Mac OS & Windows).

Thus the only solution would be to turn off your internet connection if you didn't want to be bombarded!

Just a theory...hello 1984!

- Nick

10-23-2009, 03:22 PM

Originally Posted by D3v1L80Y

I can definitely see this coming to something like a "pay as you go" iPhone.
Let's say AT&T wants to add an iPhone option to their GoPhone program.
Well, the cost of the phone would have to drop considerably or nobody would want it and in an effort to recoup the cost, advertisers pay to pick up the slack.

The GoPhone iPhones would have all of the functionality of a standard iPhone, but they would also be the only ones with the "special" version of the OS that runs the advertisements. The ads would run periodically here and there.
If you run out of minutes or paid time, then the ads would run full time until you put more cash in the account.

It's the price one would pay for having a super-fancy iPhone at the fraction of the cost.

Very true!...this would certainly be a much more "palatable" & less "ominous" way of implementing this sort of advertising method...then what I described above.

- Nick

10-23-2009, 04:22 PM

As it has been said just because Apple own the patent doesnt mean they will implement this. It could be to stop others doing it or to take a cut if they want to.

10-23-2009, 05:46 PM

This will never be implemented. If Apple ever did this, they would lose so many customers it wouldn't be funny. I would ditch Macs in no time.

The benefits to be gained from ad revenue would not be offset by the loss of customers. Implementing this in any fashion would be the worst possible decision a company could make. Sure, it could be used to drive down the price of a product but the it is hard to believe that the number of customers gained would outnumber the large group of customers who would leave.

10-23-2009, 06:34 PM

I have the funny feeling DB hit it right on the nose. That could work with a pay as you go iPhone.

10-23-2009, 06:46 PM

It could be for a pay as you go iPhone but at what point does the value of the iPhone become secondary to the advertisements? How "trendy" (for many, the iPhone is a trend statement) would the iPhone be if it was plagued with ads? Not only that, there is the potential for the ads to interrupt usage. At what point do ads and cost savings actually become "costly" in terms of usage and practicality?

If I wanted a smartphone, I would likely get an Android device or a BlackBerry. Apple adding ads to the iPhone isn't going to make the iPhone more attractive despite perhaps a more attractive price. Now, I realize pay as you go is inherently different than being on a contract but having ads doesn't negate the fact that...well...you're phone would have ads. I see enough ads in a day and I don't need another source of information about products that I probably won't use. Can you tell I'm not a fan of ads?

10-23-2009, 07:00 PM

Originally Posted by vansmith

It could be for a pay as you go iPhone but at what point does the value of the iPhone become secondary to the advertisements? How "trendy" (for many, the iPhone is a trend statement) would the iPhone be if it was plagued with ads? Not only that, there is the potential for the ads to interrupt usage. At what point do ads and cost savings actually become "costly" in terms of usage and practicality?

If I wanted a smartphone, I would likely get an Android device or a BlackBerry. Apple adding ads to the iPhone isn't going to make the iPhone more attractive despite perhaps a more attractive price. Now, I realize pay as you go is inherently different than being on a contract but having ads doesn't negate the fact that...well...you're phone would have ads. I see enough ads in a day and I don't need another source of information about products that I probably won't use. Can you tell I'm not a fan of ads?

There would of course be some app to turn that off too, eventually... wouldn't it?