This article is for: Tactus Therapy Apps
That's an honest question with a fairly simple answer. It's true that the App Store started out with mostly free apps, which made people think that apps should be free.
However, apps cost a lot of money to design, create, market, update, and support. We have equipment to buy, software to license, salaries to pay, office space to rent, and all the other costs associated with responsibly running a corporation with a staff. We want to be around to support the apps you buy, so we have to price our products sustainably.
We are doing everything we can to price our apps affordably to help those who need them. No single app is priced above $25 USD. That's a fraction of the cost of a single hour of speech therapy, and it helps us continue to provide you with high-quality apps and support.
So why are there still free apps? Let's take a look:
The Real Cost of Free Apps
Of the 100 apps dominating the iPad Top Grossing list most days, nearly all are “free.” How can they be generating the most income when nobody has to pay to download them?
It’s complicated. In fact, there are so many types of “free” apps that the App Store no longer calls them free. If there is no initial purchase required, the App Store now just shows a button that says “Get.”
All apps require work to create, so why would some developers not charge for their work? There are many reasons why an app might be free. Let’s take a look at 8 different types of “free” apps and what they really cost:
1) Totally Free
There are some apps that are completely free and may never ask you for money. These apps might be funded by a research grant or corporate sponsors, or be an educational or passion project. Be aware that the app may never be updated or may disappear from the App Store entirely. Alternatively, it may be updated to include ads or in-app purchases.
Real Cost: For developers without ongoing funding sources, creating free apps is an unsustainable business model. Expect few updates to fix bugs or add functionality, and do not be surprised if the app adds monetization or disappears entirely. Many non-updated apps won’t be allowed to stay on the App Store or won't work with newer operating systems or devices.
2) Free Trial
Often called Lite versions, these free apps give you a sample of what you will get in the full version to know if you’ll find it useful. However, they do not include much content and are intended to be used for evaluation only.
Real Cost: Limited functionality means you may need to purchase the full version to get value from the app.
3) Ad-Supported
These “free” apps offer full functionality, with advertisements that appear on banners across the screen, or ads that pop-up to fill the screen between activities (interstitial ads). Often these apps offer a paid upgrade to remove ads, and they receive money every time an ad is seen or clicked.
Real Cost: You’ll deal with the annoyance of closing ads between screens or accidentally clicking on them, which may be worth paying a fee to remove ads to avoid. You may also be using more data or battery life than you realize.
The ad-free version or upgrade should always be used if a speech therapy client will be using the app, since the ads are often flashy to attract attention, and take clients out of the app when touched. Your client is expecting a professional service, not 3rd party advertisements.
4) Accesses an Ad-Supported Service
Many established online businesses have apps that make it easier to use their service or site on a mobile device. You see the ads that support these sites when you use the free app, just as you would when you use the website.
Real Cost: Exposes you to the same integrated advertising as the non-app version of the service.
5) Supports a Brand
Many commercial services have apps that allow you to purchase directly or show you what’s in the store. Or, some app companies will offer a free app to entice users to buy others.
Real Cost: Companies are offering free products to reinforce their brand and encourage you to spend money.
6) In-App Purchases
“Freemium” apps are free to download, but have in-app purchases (IAPs) once you start using them. There are 2 types of IAP: consumable and non-consumable. Consumable IAPs are things like lives, coins, food, or points that are used up during play. More common in speech therapy apps are non-consumable IAPs like new vocabulary sets, unlocking the rest of the app, or adding new games or levels to the app.
Real Cost: Many games attempt to get users hooked on playing, then offer consumable IAPs to speed up play, advance to new levels, or buy advantages. Those with limited self-control could end up spending hundreds of dollars. Apps with non-consumable IAPs are limited in usefulness without spending and the total cost is unknown.
If your school district purchases apps using the education volume discount program, in-app purchases do not qualify. This is why you will sometimes see a full version offered as a separate title to the free one, often called Pro, Standard, or Full.
7) Subscription
Some apps appear to be free, but require a login as soon as you open them. These logins are tied to an account that requires a subscription. Some subscriptions can be purchased as IAPs, but many are purchased through the company’s website. Paid subscriptions may be weekly, monthly, or annual, and most will auto-renew if not purposefully turned off. These apps nearly always require Internet access to use.
Real Cost: Subscribing means that the developer has access to your personal information and can track your use. In healthcare, it is especially important to protect client privacy, so be careful when entering any data about patients. These auto-renewing costs can add up: a $25/month subscription will cost $300 a year.
There is also an emotional component to cancelling a speech therapy app subscription, much like an unused gym membership – it may seem like giving up on recovery, leading people to continue paying longer than needed.
8) Free for a While or Only for Some
Some paid apps offer “free for a day” promotions, encouraging downloaders to leave positive App Store reviews and recommend the app to others. Some subscription-based apps provide free use for certain types of people, such as SLPs, with the hope that they will recommend it to their clients.
Real Cost: Like doctors who are given incentives by pharmaceutical companies, SLPs given free access to apps must be constantly aware of bias toward recommending clients purchase the product they’ve been given for free.
To help overcome bias, it’s good practice to recommend at least 3 options to clients when advising purchases or making professional referrals.
Paid Apps
The alternative to a free app is one with an upfront price. While it may seem more expensive, the real cost is clear. Once you purchase the app, it’s yours forever, and you can install it on any device you own.
Be an informed consumer and recognize what you’ll really “GET” for free when you press that download button.
Tactus Therapy offers free Lite versions and paid full versions of all speech therapy apps. Explore our apps that respect your privacy and have no hidden costs.