Apple to Charge for iPad Updates

Ed Sutherland ()

Apple to Charge for iPad Updates

Owners of the upcoming iPad will have to pay for annual OS updates, according to a new Apple user agreement released online. Buyers of the tablet device expected to hit stores April 3 will get one free update, according to the Cupertino, Calif. company.

“Apple will provide you any iPad OS software updates that it may release from time to time, up to and including the next major iPad OS software release following the version of iPad software that originally shipped from Apple on your iPad, for free,” the company said.

The firm explained if an iPad shipped with iPad 3.x software, the electronics maker would provide OS updates up to and including the iPad 4.x OS.

“Such updates and releases may not necessarily include all of the new software features that Apple releases for newer iPad models,” Apple said.

The move aligns the iPad licensing with the iPad touch, which Apple has required owners to pay a small fee for iPhone OS updates.

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[via Apple Insider]

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About the author

Ed Sutherland

Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.

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  • Seth lee

    Last paragraph you put ipad touch instead of iPod touch. Thought I’d let you know. Also, I don’t think charging you for an update is too unreasonable

  • http://www.communicko.com Nick Jouannem

    Small typo but interesting slip… “iPad touch” should be “iPod touch”. Do you know something we don’t?

  • Gates

    “…the iPad touch”???

  • http://www.contently-managed.com/blog Craig McGill

    Actually that’s a misreading of the T&C’s. It may well be that the new software can’t be implemented because of changes to hardware, not anything else.

    ie – no point in a camera software install if the old iPad doesn’t have a camera (but the new one does).

  • Clown

    I thought it was unreasonable too, but considering that other major OS upgrades tend to cost from $150 to $300 (Windows, OS X) I think $10 is kinda reasonable for a major OS update, assuming that the update is reasonably “major”.

  • Josh

    As long as it stays in the $10 range…I’ll be fine with it. Begin going to $50 or more and that’s gonna be rediculous. I understand the costs for major Mac OSX upgrades, but the costs will need to stay low for iPhone/iPad updates.

  • RK

    The reason Apple has to charge a small fee for OS upgrade for its ipod touch and ipad is due to GAAP accounting rules. By such rules, it is difficult for Apple to “account” for free OS upgrade for unlimited duration. Hence, a nominal charge (although I prefer $5 instead of $10) for OS upgrade; this allows Apple to recognize most of the revenue of its device sales when the sales occur.

    One thing I don’t understand is why Apple does not charge for iphones OS upgrade. It should if the above accounting rules apply.

  • http://www.funkyflip.com David Vaccaro

    Remember… this is NOT a phone… it’s more like a computer.. ALL OS’s charge for major updates so why is this any different?