28
Jul
It has been less than three weeks since the new iPhone app store opened its doors. Apple envisioned the app store as a place where developers could sell their programs and iPhone users could buy stuff without the usual hassle most Windows and Blackberry customers have to go through.
Of course, the app store also wraps the applications in the Apple Fairplay DRM, which was intended to restrict people pirating iPhone apps.
As of today, all those restrictions are meaningless, because creative minds have once again found themselves one step ahead of Apple.
There are currently 2 ways to “re-use” an application; one involves using iTunes to copy the app onto another iPhone, just like music can be copied onto multiple iPods. The second method is more complicated, and actually involves removing the DRM completely. The first app to be shared with the community is the hugely popular “Super Monkey Ball”. Of course, the target iPhone has to be “jailbroken” and you’ll need to perform a couple of magic tricks to actually copy it onto the device.
It was inevitable, yet I’m sure it will be a disappointment to developers that their stuff has been hacked so quickly. I’m sure many of them will be sending their Apple contacts a nasty email this afternoon once they see their (no longer) DRM protected apps pop up all over the web.
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