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Apple Nixes iPad Giveaways
KingSkippus writes "According to a story at CNN, Apple has begun enforcing third party promotion guidelines (PDF) that, among other things, restricts organizations from giving away iPads, using the word 'free' to describe any Apple products in a prominent manner, or promoting giveaways of iPod Touches in lots of less than 250 and with Apple's explicit approval."
Eve enjoyed it...
You can't prevent someone from giving your product away. If they bought one, you can't keep them from giving that product to someone else.
captcha: astound
As in, I am astounded that they think this can possibly work.
Ok so they don't want organizations to buy iPads for people!? Why?
If the pads were paid for, who cares?
Is there any legal weight behind this, or is this just gesturing on Apple's part? It certainly seems like Apple shouldn't have any control over what I do with my iPad once I've bought it; no matter if I give it away for free, stick it in a blender, or install my own bootloader. It's certainly their prerogative if they want to say that any of those things void my warranty, but I don't think they can enforce any of their demands on me.
nuf said.
Get them while they last.
In 2001 they were sued by the US DOJ for restraint-of-trade, price fixing, and forming an illegal cartel.
So go ahead Apple. I look forward to seeing you get the same treatment the record companies received. Especially now that the US Congress is investigating you. Not a smart move.
Information wants to be expensive AND wants to be free. So you have Value vs. Cheap distribution fighting each other.
Plenty of alternatives to Apple products to give away: Android-based devices, Blackberry Playbook, etc. etc.
I'm not sure what they are going for here. If there is a give-away do they think it will water down the brand?
Sent from my PDP-11
I looked at the terms linked in the article. It appears these terms are attached to special purchases from Apple solely for promotional purposes. (i.e., you contact Apple beforehand about buying some for a promotion and they give you a discount). In that case, you are accepting the contract. And it's not like they'd sell you 249 iPods then get pissy because you had fewer than 250.
But, I believe that if I buy an iPad at retail, I can use it in whatever promotional capacity I see fit as long as I do not violate Apple's IP.
In short: nothing to see here, move along
-Ryan
AUWYHSTOT (Acronyms are Useless When You Have to Spell Them Out Too)
Apple is worse than Microsoft.
If Pandora's box is destined to be opened, *I* want to be the one to open it.
I wonder what legal basis they're using to "enforce" their policy towards giveaways. With software you can bind people with EULAs as part of the opening packaging/installing of software, but I wasn't aware that Apple was forcing people to sign contracts before purchasing their hardware. The best they could get away with would be trademark enforcement for promotional material but there's nothing I'm aware of that could restrict transfer of ownership of purchased goods absent a contract.
Two of my imaginary friends reproduced once
I don't know what I would do with 250 iPod Touches anyway.
A middleman party buys the iPads. This person then sells the entire lot for one cent to the giveaway party. The third party is not encumbered by the agreement, and can do whatever the hell they want.
Seems to me that I can give away whatever the hell I want as long as I own it and it's not against the law to distribute it (i.e. drugs, plutonium, etc.). I'm quite certain i'm able to own an iDevice, and i'm pretty certain it's not against the law to resell one for 0$.
As someone else mentioned, this only applies -- CAN only apply -- to special purchases made under this agreement. If I go buy an iPad at the store, Apple store or otherwise, good luck trying to enforce something like this. I doubt Apple would be stupid enough to try.
encheapin our over priced product. We must put a stop to it!
This sig is not paradoxical or ironic.
What a dick move by Apple!
PS> I love my Mac's but they are mine to do I as see fit.
Linux O Muerte!
I'm usually ambivalent toward Apple, but if the people giving the items away legally purchased them, then they can dispose of them as they see fit. Fuck Apple.
So these organizations just have to acquire the ones they give away second-hand?
Why don't they go after the Penny Bidding scams instead?
It's so sad that Apple has moved towards the Microsoft school of customer abuse...
any body else have an ad, about giving away an Ipad on here....aw i love the smell of irony in the afternoon!
and receive a free 16g iPad.
Apple, I know what you are up to, along with the rest of you who have your head in the clouds.
Just remember, when your fluffy white cloud is gone, there is nothing left but clear blue sky.
More patent nazi-ism from Apple. Quelle suprise.
"... using the word 'free' to describe any Apple products in a prominent manner."
Why would anyone do such a thing? Apple's seems to have put extreme effort into their proprietary products and services with the express purpose of keeping the idea of freedom furthest from my mind. Why anyone would attribute to them the honorable designation of "free" is beyond my ability to comprehend.
I encourage all in my home to be brave, and teach them all how to live under the full freedom afforded them in this land of free. Truly, to sign away any freedoms via Apple's EULA for a bit of entertainment or convenience is not the American way.
I live by the words, "Live free or die," It's clear to me that Apple does not -- otherwise the choice they have made is obvious and grim.
Does this mean that I'll no longer get ads for "Win an iPad" on downloaded Android apps? Because NOT getting those ads would be AWESOME and would vastly improve my Android user experience! Go Apple!
But wait! That would be a free giveaway to the homeless guy who goes through my garbage!
Damn you Apple! You've thought this one through...
I looked at the terms linked in the article. It appears these terms are attached to special purchases from Apple solely for promotional purposes. (i.e., you contact Apple beforehand about buying some for a promotion and they give you a discount). In that case, you are accepting the contract. And it's not like they'd sell you 249 iPods then get pissy because you had fewer than 250.
But, I believe that if I buy an iPad at retail, I can use it in whatever promotional capacity I see fit as long as I do not violate Apple's IP.
In short: nothing to see here, move along
If you mean the guidelines then no. There is no mentioning of rebates. The following is a excerpt from apple's third party promotion guidelines as of the date my posting.
Purchasing Apple products. You may purchase products for your promotion direct from Apple (via an Apple Retail, Online Store, or Telesales representative) or from your Apple Authorized Reseller. Visit http://www.apple.com/buy for more information.
It simply says that you may buy your promotional material from any authorized source. A cursory glance of http://www.apple.com/buy reveals nothing. There is rebates mentioned on this site however, which might have been what you presumed was related to this, however they are for mail in rebates and so forth offered by apple themselves.
Don't get so excited this is only for Apple sanctioned promotions where the advertiser wants permission to use Apple trademarks in their ads. Every company has guidelines for this. This really only applies to Apple dealers and sellers. Your free to do whatever you want if your not using Apple's IP or under contract with Apple already.
Its not a EULA it's an advertising contract. it has nothing to do with consumers.
Not the sort of PR Apple would want IMO.
Have gnu, will travel.
IANAL, but isn't there a Doctrine of First Sale that comes into effect here? As long as you're not promoting yourself to be in any way associated with Apple itself, you can pretty much do anything you want (except mod your game console) with your purchase once you own it. This seems like just another Apple power grab, enforced not by the law, but instead by their threat of legions of lawyers who will descent on to you the moment you offend King Jobs.
Apple truly is becoming The Evil Empire.
"It's the height of ridiculousness to say for those 9 lines you get hundreds of millions."
Do they even have any legal standing to enforce using of a trademark to identify their own product? I mean, if they don't want it called an iPod, maybe they should have called it something else to begin with? If I want to promote my company be giving away free iPods, good luck with convincing anyone that I can't state it as a fact.
A successful API design takes a mixture of software design and pedagogy.
Pharmaceutical companies are already giving away iPads to doctors.
Sorry, scratch that. Pharmaceutical companies are distributing their product literature on iPads.
-ted
Of course, anyone can sue anyone for anything, but Apple would have to prove that the marketing was done in a manner to make it appear that Apple endorsed the contest; simply advertising that you are giving away a product by the name of the product is not sufficient.
paintball
Is not being successful (after nearly being utterly destroyed by Microsoft in the 90's) enough?
I am very small, utmostly microscopic.
90% of the advertisements that show "Free [iPad/iPod/iPhone]" are targeted at kids scams to get people to click links and get infected with malware. Therefore, Apple does not want anyone to legitimize those fake sites by other people advertising the same thing. It is simply a method to help people hone a BS detector. If any legitimate organization wishes to award an iPad as part of a prize package, they can do that... they just cannot do it with "Click HERE to win a Free iPad".
Good security is based upon reality and common sense. Common sense is a function of having common knowledge.
Joining the ranks of such prestigious organizations such as sony, microsoft, tsa, riaa, mpaa, the kkk, the wbc, and the taliban!
They all love telling people what they should be doing. About things that are really none of their damm business.
-troll (but not by much)
I work in the automotive retail industry (aka: car dealerships).
A couple years ago we gave away 42" plasmas to people that bought a truck. It was immensely popular and I would expect us to do the same thing soon with something like the iPad - whatever is popular. "Give away" something for buying a $40K truck.
Short of Apple trying to sue us for using 'apple' or 'ipad' in putting "Free Apple iPad 2 with purchase of new truck! See dealer for details" on a billboard I see no possible recourse on their part for doing it. We just go to wal-mart, apple store etc and pay full retail for the iPads like we did with the TV's - we wouldn't be getting it from Apple and they can't say a damn thing about it - their legal department must be booooorred.
I can think of another phrase to use when referring to Apple.
Sieg Heil!
dnuof eruc rof aixelsid
This will cost apple sales from charitys and other orgs that give way stuff in sweepstakes, raffles, volunteers, blood donors and for other stuff.
they have started enforcing user profile guidelines:
- people above 25 a body mass index of 25 may not use an iDevice in public. Nor in private in BMI > 30.
- iDevice users must at all times maintain perfect cleanliness and decorum.
- conversely, certain professions may *not* use iDevices: exotic dancers, janitors, butchers, fishmongers... if in doubt, contact a Genius, or point your iDevice's camera at you in your trade dress with your last paycheck, and ask "is this OK" twice. A genius will contact you shortly.
- customers thinking they caught a virus will report to their closer AppleCamp for training on how Apple does NOT have viruses. Repeated offenses will result in termination.
- your iDevice must remain pristine at all times. Don't allow it to become dirty, no stickers, no un-approved cases.
- iDevices may not be taken to non-approved areas. if your device starts beeping loudly with a screen flashing red, immediately get back to an approved iDevice utilization zone.
Apple thanks the California Bureau of Investigations for their help in enforcing those guidelines.
The Cloud - because you don't care if your apps and data are up in the air.
Give away android tablets...
Fuck Apple
How about that?
Clearly you trademark your name so that when they try and pursue a lawsuit you claim they are using your trademarked name without permission within all of their legal documents and any media coverage of such. Such a defense is as crazy as the idea that you can't call a product by its marketed name "IF" you give it away for free.
This will cut down on some of the free ipad advertisements.... Just maybe.... Things seem to make up almost 70% of webspam.
This whole deal is to load up to take legal action against the 1000s of BS websites and advertisers proposing "Free" Apple products to people, only to pull them into a scam. Apple is finally figuring out that their prime audience are morons(actually they've always known this, the morons are just making a lot noise about their stupidity now) and need to do something to protect the morons from cyber-scammers.
I read the article, but it didn't make much sense. What freaking company wouldn't want free advertising and promotion? Guess the Cult of Apple is so strong that no body can speak of it without feeling the wrath of Lord Steve Jobs.
do you think Apple fanboys get tennis elbow from all the circle jerking?
I was at the gym the other day and felt embarrassed that I was wearing a pair of Apple earbuds (they were free). "These aren't mine! I'm not a douchebag I swear!"
251 iPod Touches!
True, copyright needs a major overhaul---it's outlived its usefulness in its current form. Arguably, patent law is even worse—certainly in the matter of patenting software.
Trademark has its problems, too, but just think about about a marketplace where trademark didn't exist. What's that widget you're buying? Oh, it's from Foo, Inc., and they make good stuff. But how do you know it isn't from Bar Corp., which pushes trash that masks itself as Fooware? You'd need a chain of custody similar to what you see on precision instruments: ``Calibration traceable to the National Institute of Standards and Technology''. Except you couldn't be sure the attestation was kosher. You'd have to do a careful analysis of every object you bought more complex than, say, a spoon, to be sure you got what you paid for.
That's the scenario trademark law is written to avoid. What we have here is a baby/bathwater situation caused by blind use of the term ``IP''.
I refuse to believe corporations are people until Texas executes one. -- desert rain on http://www.dailykos.com/user/
Jehovah! Jehovah!
You sign a contract with Apple, you have to follow the rules stated by the contract.
You don't sign a contract but just buy the products retail, you can do whatever you want (within the law).
They got their money, which is all that companies are about anyways. The individual or other company buying the product now owns it and can do with it as they wish.
200 ipads bought from Apple then given away in a contest, raffle or whatever is still 200 in the hands of consumers. Having their product in the hands of consumers cheapens their brand?
Where I currently live (Singapore), the iPad 2 was advertised as "available now!" for several days, but if you ask for one the store will tell you they're out of stock.
Meanwhile we got so many ad promotions with the magic words "win a free ipad 2" everywhere we turned, from restaurants to supermarkets to banks.
Long story short: People who wanted them can't buy them for weeks because they've been snapped up by companies intending to give them away instead of selling them. I think Apple is simply preventing this situation from happening again.
Pet peeve: Profane people propagating perfunctory pedantry.
I foresee having difficulty gluing 4 iPod Touches into a cube (x 8 x 8).
I would definitely need to get my gluon.
I don't know if anyone notices, but Apple offers iDevices for promotions etc. on their store website. Quote "Contact your Apple representative and ask about special volume pricing: ".
If you buy devices through this program, probably at a lower price than I pay in a store, then obviously any rules that Apple sets will apply. If you buy devices at a store, then all the usual copyright and trademark law will apply.
[ Re:The CD Companies tried to do this(Score:5, Troll) ]
LOL, your score on this post. I guess you get +5 troll points.
who prays for Satan? Who in 18 centuries has had the humanity to pray for the 1 sinner that needed it most? ~Mark Twain
Maybe their intent is to stop matrix scams, dutch auctions etc. but I don't see how it would help there either. People running these scams are hardly likely to care what Apple thinks.
Finally, if they're cracking down on the term "free", why not do it where everyone knows the term is abused - phone contracts. i.e. Get a FREE iphone when you sign up for some ludicrous 2 year contract and so on. In the example link's case the free phone merely requires the user pay £1512 to receive it and service, and that doesn't even include any data!
AT&T and Verizon do this all the time, and this won't stop them. I didn't read the full document, but from the summary I find this laughable. They'll just get creative. Instead of "Buy 1 iPad and get another Free! (w/ new contract)", they'll say, "Buy 2 iPads and get a $499 Loaded Visa(r) Card back(w/ new contract)".
They don't need to say free, rebate, or anything. They could do these on credit as well. "Purchase an iPad with our new Consumer Debit Card!" and on a different poster "Spend at least $499 with our new Consumer Debit Card and you're automatically entered to win to have it paid off for you!"
Quite honestly, Apple may know all the ways to lock something down, but they are RANK AMATEURS if they think retailers won't find each and every loop hole.
I8-D
That is all.
Life sucks, but death doesn't put out at all. -- Thomas J. Kopp
Without permission you can't use the word "Super Bowl". Therefore you often see promotions for Super Bowl events that use other language. For example, you can't have a give away for free Super Bowl tickets, but you can offer tickets to "The big game" as a prize.
Individuals and businesses are protected under the First Amendment in what's called "nominative fair use," in which a trademark is allowed to be used if it describes a phrase and lacks commercial intent, Basin says. For instance, an electronics store ad could suggest to customers that they "Come get your TV before the Super Bowl," because it is describing an event.
http://www.businessinsider.com/att-gocharge-kiosks-dodging-the-super-bowl-trademark-2011-2#ixzz1O7E1h52l
They could probably have gotten away with "Win a free tablet computer" as the prize.
It's amazing how consistently Apple acts like a control freak. It can't just be Steve Jobs because this is a trait that seems to permeate the company at all levels. Any Apple employees want to confirm? I can just imagine what the hiring process for new managers would be like. No technical expertise required, just this: "Do you support a firm and controlling management style for customers, partners, friends, colleagues and those that report to you? Oh, you do? Well, then you're hired!"
So now the Apple monster rears it's ugly head. Talk about control freaks!
And how are they gonna enforce it, as it's not illegal for a thirdparty to give away an iPad/iPod/iPhone/whatever.. Apple has no say in anything what a thirdparty does with the Apple product.. Screw Apple for trying to limit people what they can do with their product.. As far as I'm concerned the last good apple product was the Apple ][, the rest is just ripped stuff courtesy of asshole Steve Jobs..
You know, I have never had a problem with Apple till now. At this rate, Apple could exceed Microsoft's and Facebook's level of evil...
Oh wait, too late...
If Smith & Wesson put forth a policy stating gun users may not use guns to kill people, that would eliminate all firearm homicides, right?
Well, according to The Steve's legal eagles anyway...
This isn't the first time I've seen something like this. Back in the heyday of Palm, if you had a reseller agreement with them, you had to agree to the same condition: no "buy a computer, get a free Palm" type giveaways.
I agree with the others that said that Apple (and Palm) are just trying to avoid devaluing the product in the eyes of consumers. And I'm sure, like Palm, they couldn't and wouldn't try to enforce this on anyone who wasn't an authorized reseller.
That turttle neck sweater is getting a little tight! Seems Apple is fast becomming the Big Brother from their 1984 commercial! You ever tried to get software that will now work on your G5 system? I could not even hook my iPad and phone to the bloody thing using Tiger.
wtf?
But then, this is Apple.
I'm guessing the intention here is to get rid of those companies who have 'win an iPad 2! or ' type competitions where they actually only have one or two iPads and a mountain of the other prize that costs less than the price of entry, leaving them with a tidy profit.
I can see how being named in those kind of promotions repeatedly could leave your brand cemented into peoples minds alongside the word 'ripoff'.
Not sure they've entirely nailed down the implementation here though...
I may be the last of my kind. I'm reading this from my free iPad I won at a software conference.
I don't think Apple should continue with the nix. I never would have purchased an iPad for myself because I could never justify the cost for little benefit I saw. But now, it's apparent what this de ice can do for me. Also, now I'm buying cases, software etc. from Apple that I never would have without it.