iTunes Store account mandatory for iPhone?

Stephen Withers
Thursday, 14 June 2007 04:13

Your IT - Mobility

iPhone buyers may be required to have an iTunes Store account, according to one interpretation of information on Apple's web site.

The 'Get ready for iPhone' page suggests six things that people can do between now and June 29 when the device goes on sale in the US. The final item begins "To set up your iPhone, you'll need an account with Apple's iTunes Store. If you already have an iTunes account, make sure you know your account name and password. If you don’t have an account, you should set one up now to save time later."

The most obvious interpretation is that an iTunes Store account is mandatory. But if that was what Apple meant, wouldn't the statement have been made less ambiguous? Something like "You must have an iTunes account to set up your iPhone" would be unequivocal.

Instead, there's wriggle room. Maybe what Apple means is that one of the pieces of information the iPhone setup process asks users is their iTunes account details, in other words, "To complete the set up your iPhone, you’ll need an account with Apple’s iTunes Store."

But why would the iPhone need the account details? One reason would be so it can authorise itself as a device entitled to play FairPlay-protected tracks purchased from the iTunes Store on that account. That's just a one-shot process, and with iTunes it doesn't occur until the user first attempts to play a track associated with a particular account.

So what frequent activity requires an iTunes Store account? Purchasing items from the Store. Could this be a clue that the iPhone will support the purchase of songs, videos and perhaps games and other software directly from the iTunes Store without requiring a computer as an intermediary?

Please read on to find why we think that would work for all concerned.