14 DAY TRIAL // Organizations that deployed iDevices purchased in bulk on or after September 1, 2013 are entitled to free iLife and iWork apps, according to a Support document on Apple’s web site. All they need is a proof of purchase, such as an invoice or a purchase order form.
Titled “Volume Purchase Program: Requesting free iLife and iWork apps,” Support document HT6182 explains that “If your business or educational institution is part of the Apple Volume Purchase Program, you can make iLife for iOS (iPhoto and iMovie) and iWork for iOS (Pages, Keynote, and Numbers) available to your users for free.”
The program extends only to iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices that are iOS 7 compatible, not Macs or devices that are running iOS 6 or older firmware versions.
Apple proceeds to outline the program requirements, the first of which is that the organization must be enrolled in the Volume Purchase Program (VPP). Another requirement is to show Apple a proof of purchase (such as an invoice or purchase order).
The documents need to attest that your organization purchased the iOS 7 devices on or after September 1, 2013, and “the number of eligible iOS 7 compatible devices must be clearly marked,” according to the Cupertino, California-based technology giant.
If the organization bought these devices before September 1, 2013 but activated them after this date, it will also be able to benefit from this offer. Apple only asks for one more step to be followed:
“Devices purchased before September 1, 2013 but activated afterwards are also eligible. In this case, you will need the device serial number for each request.”
As far as requesting the apps is concerned, the IT administrator handling the request will need to visit the site that is most appropriate to his / her organization – Businesses and Enterprise / Educational Institutions – and select iOS fulfillment from the dropdown menu, as shown in the screenshot above.
The last step is to complete the rest of the form and click Submit. Apple promises to make contact within five business days and “follow up with your request.”
Editor’s note GarageBand is notably excluded from the offer. It would appear that the company believes it has put too much work into its music-making application to just hand it over for free, though it would have made a heck of a difference. On the other hand, Apple may not want to encourage students to play with drum kits in class.