Fresh off the .1 update which made 3rd party applications disappear and also bricked unlocked iPhones, could Apple be gearing up to offer 3rd party application support as an olive branch in the war against unlocking the iPhone? 9-5 Mac seems to think so. As does Engadget . The popular tech blog is reporting on the Apple Rumor site’s speculation that what Cupertino actually sees is a revenue stream and that certified thirty party applications will be sold via iTunes much like popular music, video, and games.

The concept, though, appears to be modeled more on TMobile’s SideKick application development concepts, but utilizing iTunes to distribute any approved application. This is largely due to Apple’s desire to control what applications are available and at what price. And why not? It didn’t seem to make sense that Apple would create the ability to have other applications, and then deliberately hobble it. It may be that Apple wanted to “focus test” the option by leaving a window wide open for eager users to exploit.

But the question is, will the open source community be able to compete through anyopen wind without fear of retribution from those who “Think Differently?”

Photo source/credit: Engadget