Apple to charge customers $1 each time their Mac boots

Money automatically transfered from users' bank accounts

July 18, 2002
By Jeremy Borger

During his keynote speech Wednesday, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced that Apple would begin charging Mac users $1 every time their Macintosh boots.

"We love money," said Jobs. "And we really think this is a great way to get some of yours."

Apple has never had a "boot charge" on any of its computers before, but Jobs says it hasn't been because they haven't wanted to. It just hasn't been technically feasible until now.

"The Internet has given us so many new ways of getting money from our customers," said Jobs. "Now OS X will keep track of how many times you boot and send that information to Apple whenever you go online."

The boot charge will be introduced in Jaguar, the next major revision to OS X, due out August 24. Jaguar will cost $129. No upgrade versions will be available.

Some Mac users have gotten upset that they will be charged for Jaguar and then have to pay a dollar every time their Mac starts up. Jobs says it's a fair charge.

"When you drive a car, you pay for the car, but then have to pay periodically to put gas in it, change the oil, rotate the tires, and tune the engine," said Jobs. "If you want the best computer in the world, you're gonna have to pay for it."

"Why don't they just charge me for my mac.com e-mail address while they're at it," said disgruntled Mac user Stephan Schwartz.

Later in the keynote, Jobs annouced all iTools features, now referred to as .mac (dot mac), will cost $99 a year, including e-mail.

"Son of a b****," said Schwartz.

Others were concerned that the boot charge would cause Apple to issue more Software Updates that require the computer to reboot in order to make a quick buck.

"Now every time the 2 million people running OS X install a system update, Apple makes $2 million dollars," said Guernsey Research analyst Chris LeTocq.

The move seems strangley "Microsoft-esque". Mircosoft charges money for a premium version of its spam-laden Hotmail service. Windows XP reguarly transfers personal information to Microsoft, including processor speed, DVD being played, bank information, a list of all non-Microsoft software installed, girlfriends' telephone numbers, e-mail containing the phrase "Bill Gates sucks", and cartoon porn.

Inside sources at Apple say more "pay-per-use" features are going to be added in future versions of OS X, including

  • 1 cent each time the "H" key is pressed
  • .5 cents for every e-mail sent
  • 5 dollars every time the computer is unplugged, moved across state lines, and plugged back in
  • 2 cents every time a web page with the word "Apple" on it is displayed (like this one)
  • 2 dollars each time someone signs a petition complaining about .mac fees
  • 10 cents each time a movie is viewed with QuickTime
  • 15 cents each time a movie is viewed with something other than QuickTime
  • A 20 cent CD burning tax (part of the new "Rip, Mix, Burn, Charge" campaign)

    • Jobs himself also referred to new fees being added to future versions of Apple's "iApps".

    "Just wait till you see our new digital rights management software built into iTunes 4," said Jobs. "Every time you play an MP3 or MP4, a quarter is automatically wired from your bank account to the RIAA. It just works."

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