Apple has announced that it will no longer be supporting the iTunes Allowances feature as from May 25 onwards.
iTunes Allowances is a feature that helped parents who use Apple devices to set aside some few dollars to be used by their kids when purchasing items in the iTunes App Store. This was something cool for kids; however, it seems Apple is preparing an even better offering in the shape of Family Sharing.
There is little to worry about in case you had already set aside some funds in your credit card yet your kid happens to not have used it by the time of this date. According to Apple, the set-aside funds will still be usable in the same capacity. But the service will end once the said funds are exhausted.
While there are no concrete reasons from Cupertino regarding the ending of this service, there is string reason to believe that the need to switch to Family Sharing is what is driving the iPhone maker. This is a new feature that will be very helpful to parents when it comes to managing what their kids buy from the Apple App Store.
The feature lets a family of up to six people share content without the need of sharing accounts. Once the content is shared, any member of the family can access it, whether its photos or purchases made on Apple’s online platforms.
Here is how to setup Family Sharing
With Apple prepping to come in with Family Sharing services while at the same time doing away with the iTunes Allowances, it is essential that you know how to setup this service on your devices.
To begin with, choose a family organizer whose role is to send invites to other five members as well as approve payments for any purchases made. Once this is done, head to Settings>iCloud>Setup Family Sharing for iOS devices, on the other hand, Macs will require that you head to the Menu>System Preferences>iCloud>Setup Family Sharing.
In actual sense, the family organizer will be in charge of paying for what the family members purchase. As a result, linking a credit card to the created account is a must. If your Apple ID is already linked to a credit card, skip this step and immediately start adding family members using their Apple IDs. In case the member being added is within, there is an option to manually add their passcode to complete the invitation process. Alternatively, they will have to be sent an invitation to join the group.
There is a feature known as Ask to Buy. Here, parents can use this feature to first approve any download, be it paid or free. There are lots of other features buried deep into this Family Sharing feature and parents will definitely enjoy the shift.