Wired has just published a piece talking about adding enhancements to hardware gadgets via software upgrades. They are calling it “Hardware as a Service.” The article goes on to mention:
“At Macworld 2008, Apple’s announcements of significant — and free — upgrades to existing gadgets, including the iPhone and Apple TV, confirms a growing trend of giving customers substantial new features even after they’ve brought the products home.”
They seem surprised by the altruistic nature of giving away these upgrades for “free.” What they seem to be missing is that they need people to install the latest version of the application so they have new ways to monetize the product. e.g. Movie rentals in the AppleTV upgrade. If they need to offer a shiny new interface for free to make users want the upgrade, so be it.
(Full Disclosure: I am a fan of the Apple model, hold shares in the company, and am looking forward to renting movies on my newly upgraded AppleTV shown above.)
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