I think I have a decent idea but have NO idea how to write a program. Not something I would expect money from, but I would certainly find it useful. Is there a way to have someone else write it for me or just give someone else the idea to see if they think it is a decent idea?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
iPhone App Store Numbers Reveal Large Revenue Opportunities
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Remember all those whiners that complained about apple waiting till $250 in sales before writing a check to the developer?
It's not $250, it's $250 per region and there are something like 30 regions. My app sells only one copy per day in many regions (and fortunately several hundred in English speaking countries), so there will be a lot of regions that I don't get paid from, even though in total I have sold a decent number of copies in all of these regions combined.
I am a little scared now that there will be an even bigger flood of crappy apps now that the impressive sales numbers are being made public.
I can give a bit of insight into the difference between sales in the U.S. and Canada: My app was ranked between 80 and 90 on the top 100 paid apps yesterday in the U.S. and sold 148 copies there. In Canada it was ranked around #14, and it only sold 75.
LOL...you sound like the news when first Apple Store opened. They all said it would never work. Please consider that we're approaching 2010. Consider 12million iPhones with all those Apps running. And consider that those Apps can be updated for next iPhones. Pretty much sky is the limit. App store has the best marketing place.
RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOUR FACE! On your Phone, while Wii or Xbox is always home.
You just underestimated apple.
=)
Free games and apps?
I want an iphone so bad. Can't get off of my Sprint contract without paying $400.00. Here's hoping Spring does something stupid like raise their text messaging rates again, and I can cancel early.
I did read about the surpreme court ruling those contract cancellation fees unconstitutional in California. Very interesting.
I want an iphone so bad. Can't get off of my Sprint contract without paying $400.00. Here's hoping Spring does something stupid like raise their text messaging rates again, and I can cancel early.
I did read about the surpreme court ruling those contract cancellation fees unconstitutional in California. Very interesting.
Don't read too much into these sales figures folks. Obviously since the app store is new people are buying lots of apps just to have fun and see what's possible. Once the apps store has been out for 6 months you'll see that each application is selling significantly less per month than it is now. Although there will be more people capable of buying iphone applications in 6 months from now, there will also be many more applications competing for each application-buying dollar, and there will be many fewer people buying applications just for the fun exploration of it.
If you want to make applications for the iphone because you think it'll be fun or interesting, then absolutely go for it! But if you want to write programs for the iphone because you think it's a sure fire way to get rich quick, then you might wanna reevaluate.
If you want to make applications for the iphone because you think it'll be fun or interesting, then absolutely go for it! But if you want to write programs for the iphone because you think it's a sure fire way to get rich quick, then you might wanna reevaluate.
While I agree people shouldn't get into it to "get rich quick"... it's still a great opportunity. Where else can a grad-student (I believe she is) put work into a small useful app, and then just put it out there with all distribution, sales etc... taken care of, and stand to make 6-digits this year on it.
arn
Absolutely it's a great opportunity, but it's far from a sure thing, and IMO the best opportunity is right now. IMO in 6 months from now the amount off each app being bought will be significantly lower. But I don't have a crystal ball, just an educated guess. So don't let me discourage anyone from making a great iphone app if they have the inclination.
I would be happy if I made enough money to just pay for my setup. Any money after that would become "petty cash" leaving my entire paycheck to go towards bills and retirement.
My thoughts exactly. I got a book a couple weeks ago... Can't afford a new Mac but I'm thinking of installing Leopard on my cheapo Gateway laptop... T'would at least allow me to hack together a few lines of code, possibly leading my to submit an app, returning some revenue for me to buy a REAL Mac... imagine that!!!
-Clive
People who were talking down about Apple taking a 30% cut should be able to see better now how else on earth an application like TapeMeasure can earn $300 per day?! The arrangement is such a wonderful opportunity particularly for small developers I am so glad to witness it.
I wish I knew some objective C++!
That's what people said about the iTunes Music Store when it first launched... That the high sales figures early on were due to people being curious, and once everyone tried it, demand would dwindle. Oh, and that the Apple zealots were the ones buying all the music, but the general public wants more choices. Etc.
I predict the exact opposite of what you predict. I think this is just the tip of the iceberg. iPhone and iPod touch sales will increase exponentially over the next year, and app sales will go right along with them. Obviously not every app will be a winner, but a well designed app that's entertaining or serves a need should be able to find an audience and generate some income for it's developer.
It makes me sick to have missed out on this opportunity (From my lack of programming knowledge).
I think the 'real software developers' will quickly take over, and much like desktop land the big shots will crowd out the little guys.
Apple could also pull an eBay and make it less and less small guy friendly as it develops.
I hope the guy who made Band in England can retire though...That guy was cool.
I think the 'real software developers' will quickly take over, and much like desktop land the big shots will crowd out the little guys.
Apple could also pull an eBay and make it less and less small guy friendly as it develops.
I hope the guy who made Band in England can retire though...That guy was cool.
Hopefully it ends up like the Mac desktop platform, where there are a lot of relatively little guys who do pretty well for themselves (Panic, Delicious Monster, etc., etc.).
I just bought a copy of your app after seeing your post. I've always wished for a way to do this. Thanks!
It's been a decade since I last did some real programming, but sounds like it's time to pick up a MacBook (been thinking of replacing my Dell anway) and dust off the coding skills...
apples to apples
Anyone have comparisons from other Smartphones/PDA developers?
Anyone else think all those talented developers working for all the other software companies are looking at this closely? If one person can make an app that generates hundreds of dollars per day, it must look like the road to independence to many people. If you really have a good idea and know anything about coding you almost have to give it a try.
Anyone have comparisons from other Smartphones/PDA developers?
Anyone else think all those talented developers working for all the other software companies are looking at this closely? If one person can make an app that generates hundreds of dollars per day, it must look like the road to independence to many people. If you really have a good idea and know anything about coding you almost have to give it a try.
I think you are right to be skeptical but as with any business venture, if you see a gap in the market and there is demand for it then I believe the App Store is one of the best methods of exploiting it for amatuers and part time developers on any platform.
Minus the cost of the servers and network switches.
The cost to power same server and network.
The cost to the ISP for the bandwidth.
The cost to the banks to process the payments.
The App Store isn't exactly a pure profit operation.