Apple's iTunes Store, the only Apple-approved source for iPhone applications, is getting some competition. Jay Freeman, the developer behind the Cydia app that allows software not approved by Apple to be installed on the iPhone, has launched the Cydia Store, an unauthorized alternative online market for iPhone applications. two other developers are also planning online stores to sell iPhone applications that haven't been approved by Apple. One plans a store called Rock Your Phone for iPhone to help make jailbreaking -- the process of installing code that undoes Apple's software lock on the iPhone -- and installing apps not approved by Apple easier. The other plans an online store specializing in adult applications. Apple maintains tight control over the applications that are available through the iTunes Store for the iPhone. And while many developers accept Apple's oversight and the market has validated it, some chafe at the company's restrictions. Freeman insists Cydia is not about pirating applications. He says it's for applications that Apple would never approve.

The kinds of applications Apple is willing to approve for sale in its iTunes Store have been changing, perhaps due to pressure from dissident developers like Freeman. In December, Apple started allowing novelty applications, such as the Pull My Finger flatulence simulator, to be sold. It had previously rejected such apps citing their lack of utility. Apple hasn't yet responded legally to stop Freeman and the Cydia Store but the company has asked government agencies not to grant copyright law exemptions so that the iPhone can be legally jailbroken. As long as there's money to be made in iPhone apps, Apple can expect that attack to continue.

[InformationWeek]