The Loop » App Store

∞ Apple to developers: don’t juice App Store rankings or you’re out

Peter Cohen — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 16:41:18 +0000

Apple warns iOS app makers not to use ranking services, or risk losing their developer license.

In-app purchases to lead app market revenue by 2015

Peter Cohen — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:20:29 +0000

Steve Peterson for Industrygamers:

Market research firm IHS iSuppli is projecting that in-app purchases will account for 64% of total app market revenue by 2015, up from 39% in 2011. These percentages reflect the total from both iOS and Android smartphones. In-app purchases already represent 45% of iOS app revenue and 31% of the highest-earning Android apps.

I often take iSuppli figures with a grain of salt, but there’s no question that iPhone and other smartphone

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In defense of Atari

Peter Cohen — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 18:35:29 +0000

Technologizer:

I’m all in favor of developers drawing upon old games for inspiration, improving them and turning them into entirely new ideas. And I like fan-made homages when they expand significantly on the original and–this is important–are not sold for commercial gain (Vector Tanks cost $1, and Extreme cost $2). But in this case, the makers of Vector Tanks simply copied Battlezone’s look, feel and core play mechanics, and added a few frills. That’s a soulless approach

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Apple’s Mac App Store tops 100 million downloads

Jim Dalrymple — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 13:48:36 +0000

Apple today announced that over 100 million apps have been downloaded from the Mac App Store in less than one year. With thousands of free and paid apps, the Mac App Store brings the App Store experience to the Mac so you can find great new apps, buy them using your iTunes account, and download and install them in just one step. Apple revolutionized the app industry with the App Store, which now has more than 500,000 apps and where customers have downloaded more than 18 billion apps and continue to download more than 1 billion apps per month.

Wow!

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∞ Tap Fish maker responds to Daily Show piece

Peter Cohen — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 16:32:50 +0000

Last week Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” broadcast a segment on an iOS game called Tap Fish. They pitted the developer against a parent whose children ran up huge charges purchasing virtual goods inside the app. Now the developer wants to set the record straight.

“Video Game Dealers” was, by all accounts, a typical Daily Show field report. Correspondent Aasif Mandvi played

∞ Daily Show takes on iOS game in-app purchases

Peter Cohen — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 19:47:33 +0000

In-app purchases in iOS games have been the subject of media scrutiny, since children often play them and there have been cases where kids have spent huge amounts of their parents’ money to get virtual in-game goods. Apple has put safeguards in place to help reduce these instances, but that hasn’t stopped such incidents from occurring entirely.

On Thursday night’s show, Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” zeroed in on one such case, with their typical humor:

Apple, Google skip ESRB mobile app ratings

Peter Cohen — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 23:47:27 +0000

Apple and Google are sitting out an opportunity to work with the ESRB for its new mobile apps rating system.

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∞ Apple allows subscriptions for iOS games

Peter Cohen — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:24:33 +0000

Apple is introducing a subscription model to games, if a recent Big Fish Games release is any indication.

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∞ ∞ Apple takes in up to 90% of money spent on mobile apps

Jim Dalrymple — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 16:26:34 +0000

Apple controls about 85-90 percent of the money spent on mobile applications, according to a research note from an analyst on Monday.

In the note to clients, Piper Jaffray Senior Research Analyst, Gene Munster said he believes Google’s Android Market has generated about 7 percent of the gross revenue that Apple’s App Store has since it started.

Of course, the Android Market will grow, but Munster believes that even with that growth Apple will control more than 70 percent of the App Store

∞ ∞ JBL offers portable iOS speaker system with Bluetooth

Peter Cohen — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:58:28 +0000

JBL has taken the wraps off their OnBeat Extreme, a new portable dock for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch with support for Bluetooth wireless connectivity. It’s priced at $599.

The OnBeat Extreme has dual bass drivers and tweeters, and features Digital Signal Processing hardware that can be tweaked using a free downloadable app which lets you control equalization settings so you

∞ ∞ Time Command Mini alarm clock works with iOS devices

Peter Cohen — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 12:33:43 +0000

The Time Command Mini is a compact alarm clock designed especially for iOS devices; an app enhances its use.

∞ In-app purchase revenue growing

Jim Dalrymple — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 23:53:50 +0000

Chris Herbert for MacStories:

Freemium apps (free to download, but require an in-app purchase to expand the app) are growing particularly faster in the in-app purchasing paradise. Free app downloads have increased by 34% since 2010 while paid downloads only grew 7% in the same time frame. Distimo’s research only covered the Top 200 in each category, but that’s a strong selection of the App Store’s money

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∞ Anonymous developer suggests protest against Apple, Google

Jim Dalrymple — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 02:34:07 +0000

Apple and Google are dragging their feet to assist with the Macrosolve and Lodsys patent bullying of small businesses, entrepeneurs, and developers. Without Apple’s and Google’s assistance, the app development community is vulnerable to the strategic attacks made by these companies. Since no Union for developers exists, individual developers are defenseless to the financial and legal bullying brought on by Lodsys and Macrosolve. Small companies and developers cannot afford to

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∞ ∞ Apple, Starbucks launch 'Pick of the Week'

Jim Dalrymple — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 19:58:59 +0000

Apple and Starbucks on Tuesday relaunched the partnership that saw the companies bring “Song of the Week” to customers. However, this new program is even bigger.

Dubbed “Pick of the Week,” the new program will include all types of content from iTunes, including including music, apps, TV episodes and books. Launching today is extended sample of Erin Morgenstern’s “The Night Circus,” the

∞ RIM: Mac users not wanted

Jim Dalrymple — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 01:25:27 +0000

BlackBerry App World:

This web page uses ActiveX controls that work only in Microsoft Internet Explorer. To ensure that BlackBerry App World is correctly downloaded to your BlackBerry, this site is not designed to work with any other Internet browsers. If you cannot use Internet Explorer, you may be able to download the software directly to your BlackBerry smartphone.

So there’s this new thing called HTML5…

[

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∞ ∞ Salesforce CEO gifts App Store trademark to Jobs

Jim Dalrymple — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 15:28:55 +0000

TNW:

Benioff liked the name so much that he trademarked the term and bought the domain. It was only when Apple (and Jobs) introduced the App Store on the iPhone that the Salesforce chief decided he needed to something about the term and

∞ ∞ Google Books exits App Store; Kobo, WSJ pull web links

Peter Cohen — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 15:51:05 +0000

Wall Street Journal:

“In a pair of moves that suggest Apple Inc. is enforcing rules for selling content on its devices, Kobo Inc., the Canadian e-book retailer, and The Wall Street Journal said Sunday they will no longer sell content directly to customers through their apps for Apple devices.”

The article also notes that Google Books has been removed from the App

∞ ∞ Apple launches Business App Store for volume purchases

Jim Dalrymple — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 23:11:42 +0000

Apple on Wednesday launched its B2B App Store, allowing businesses to make volume purchases of apps.

∞ ∞ Developers remove apps from US store, fearing patent lawsuits

Jim Dalrymple — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 23:32:25 +0000

Charles Arthur writing for The Guardian:

App developers are withdrawing their products for sale from the US versions of Apple’s App Store and Google’s Android Market for fear of being sued by companies which own software patents – just as a Mumbai-based company has made a wide-ranging claim against Microsoft, Apple, Google, Yahoo and a number of other companies over

∞ ∞ Apple offers App Store Volume Purchasing for Business

Peter Cohen — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 17:29:15 +0000

Finally recognizing the iPad and iPhone as important business tools, Apple has started a new volume purchasing program for businesses.