Apple Changes Freemium Wording in the App Store to Avoid Getting Sued

Screenshot: WIRED

Up until yesterday, when you visited the App Store on iOS and browsed through free apps, the download button on the far right said “Free” in all caps. It made sense: The app is free to download, after all. But if you visit the App Store now, that “Free” button now says “Get.” This is being done to avoid confusion, and potential litigation, around apps that actually include in-app purchases.

Earlier this year, Google ceased labeling apps as “free” if they included in-app purchases, following a request from the European Commission (EC). The EC came out with four guidelines it wanted app stores and developers to follow: Games labeled as “free” shouldn’t be misleading about actual costs; they shouldn’t exhort children to ask their parents to make in-app purchases; they should inform users about purchasing practices and not allow purchases without explicit consent; and app makers should offer an email address where users can file complaints. When this happened in July, Apple also agreed to make changes to its App Store, but never specified when.

Apple already offers a number of safeguards against accidental in-app purchases. The Family Sharing feature in iOS 8 includes something called Ask to Buy, which is designed to ensure kids ask for permission before making iTunes or App Store purchases. The feature sends a notification to the parent’s iOS device, where you can tap to grant permission or deny it. Otherwise, apps have to ask for confirmation that you want to make the in-app purchase before it goes through, and then you either need to enter your passcode or use Touch ID to validate the purchase. Previously, Apple settled with the FTC over rampant, exorbitant in-app purchases from minors when there were no safeguards against kids being able to make these purchases on their own. It also offered app users who suffered from this issue a way to get refunded.

So now all iOS apps that are initially free to purchase have a “Get” button next to their title rather than a “Free” button, regardless of whether they offer in-app purchases or not. Google also changed the Top Free Apps and Top Free Games section headers to “Top Apps” and “Top Games” to comply with EC requests, but Apple has thus far left its “Free” app section titles unchanged.