Trouble in the (99-cent) App Store
With 10,000 applications and 300 million downloads in less than four months, Apple’s iPhone may be the most successful software platform since the IBM personal computer.
But that doesn’t mean all is well in the App Store.
In fact, the business model that nurtured its success now threatens to choke off the programming talent that sustained it.
The problem is succinctly encapsulated in a bar graph and an open letter to Steve Jobs. The bar graph was posted Nov. 30 by Edible Apple, a few days before the App Store hit the 10,000 mark. It shows the distribution of prices — from $0 to $49.99 — for the bulk of available applications (it leaves off the 30 or so apps that cost more than $50).
