One of the biggest let downs for Apple fan boys world wide was the lack of SDK with the original release of the iPhone. Apple are trying to make things right with the official announcement of the upcoming SDK and version 2.0 of the iPhone firmware. Doesn’t it sound to good to be true?
Ok, instead of writing about the people who are already announced programs for the iPhone and Touch (Salesforce and Will Wright’s Spore), or the new additions that Apple are adding to the new firmware (Exchange support for the corporate user), lets think of ways Apple will turn this against the user.
Apple have this fantastic way of making people pay for everything. If you didn’t know, Apple were the people who started removing the power adapter from the iPods, that caused most other companies to adopt the habit. Now they are releasing a SDK, but you will have to buy new software through the iTunes store. Not just a video, sound and game distribution platform any more.
That isn’t all either. To publish an application you have to pay Apple a fee of $US99, and 30% of sales. It means that if you were planning to make open source software with the SDK, you better think again.
What other evils are Apple planning with this software package? Other then the licensing of ActiveSync for the corporate world (which is utter crap), they have hinted about unlocked phones losing access to the store. This will also include any hacked devices, that are quite happily enjoying free software addons already.
Apple have taken the ability to modify a potentially great device, taking away the ability for consumers to crack it open and change the way the device is used, and turned it into a money making machine for large companies to overcharge people for software that should have come standard with the device in the first place. You will be able to enjoy your Apple induced prison around June of this year.

For more info, click over to DailyTech.