In this installment of rebutting the talking points of iPad haters out there, we'll talk about the iTunes App Store.
This talking point is not broadly aimed at all "app stores" as ones for Blackberry and Android exist. This talking point is aimed squarely at the iTunes App Store because the availability of the app within the App Store is subject to Apple's review of the product itself. It's not just a code review where they can reject the app for using undocumented APIs, but they can reject it based on duplication of Apple's own native apps in terms of functionality or aesthetics, or they can reject it based on poor taste or appropriateness.
The App Store is Disney World where your time within its walled garden is tightly controlled. No nudity or sexual content, no vulgarity, no apps that aren't within Apple's own quality assurance. Any developer's app reflects upon the overall user experience on the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad.
That being said, it's the goal of the App Store review process to make sure you get a high-quality product, in terms of both hardware & software, and 3rd party applications.
With no review process, users can be susceptible to whatever the developer wants you to install -- good or bad. Those other app stores or marketplaces do not have a review or QA process. The App Store app review process is part-self-preservation for Apple. They have to protect that their native apps have an advantage over everyone else's. For example, multitasking. You can run processes in the background, just as SMS, Mail and iPod. SMS and Mail can send or retrieve messages while the device is doing something else. The iPod can continue to play music and it doesn't have to be running the iPod app to do so. You can run other apps and the music will continue to play. No other apps are allowed to do this (actually as of this summer, apps can run in the background or have their session state saved when iPhone OS 4 is released).
The App Store allows the developer to develop without having to deal with advertising or marketing their app, or posting it on various online stores. That's all taken care of in the App Store...at a price. But each developer will gauge differently how much their time is worth. You may have developers who are great developers but not great marketers...for them, it wouldn't be any different than hiring someone to do that work for them, which is where the App Store steps in. Everyone is on equal footing and given the same amount of attention in the App Store unless your app is featured on the homepage. They're guaranteed some exposure as all users of Apple mobile devices have to come to a single portal for their application needs. It becomes a huge benefit to the developer as they can focus and devote more time to their application and less time operating a store front.
While the App Store gives Apple a lot of control, it's their playground with their rules. It has made some developers successful and I'm sure they would agree that without the App Store they would have to do much more work to reach the same level of success.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment