[casual_games] iPhone...

[Kim Pallister]

> > Learning that the iPhone is not open is very disappointing.

>

> I find it a very strange decision from Apple if this is true.



>No, actually that decision makes sense. Apple wants to be able to

control the user experience. After all, that's the main thing that
differentiates the iPhone from similar devices. If they open up, you'll
get some cool software but also a lot of crap, and Apple is probably
worried that the crappy stuff would reflect badly on the iPhone. That's
what happened in the early, open days of console gaming - a glut of
low-quality games turned people off the whole idea of video games for a
while.


>It seems that their best strategy would be to keep the iPhone closed,

but make it fairly easy to get approved to develop software for it.

This is pretty a straight-forward closed-platform/vertical-integration story, no?

iPod's been a good closed-platform success for them; looks like they are following the same model.

Open = more choice for consumers, more chance of bugs/incompatibility, etc
Closed = less choice for consumers, more chance it 'Just Works'.

i.e. iPod vs 'generic MP3'; PC vs Mac; etc.

Closed/Vertical wins first and proves the market; Open wins in the long run. At least as Geoffery Moore sees it.


(It's a bit stickier than that since most models fall somewhere between the two. E.g. Console is 'closed' but allows for other players to write SW and then cert's it).

Kim