Apple News, Analysis and Podcasts

Apple's app store is pulling away from the rest of the app stores as the place to introduce new applications to the world. Only if the application is successful, will it be ported to another platforms. The App Store not only makes it easy for users to find the best apps, it also gives developers a unified platform to build and sell their apps.

While Android begins to dominate the smart-phone market-share, it has no clear app store. Google Android Market is the official app store for Android, but there are as many app stores for Android as there are phones running it. Most device manufacturers have opened up stores for their own devices to increase their revenue. Amazon has created their own App Store for Android to compete with Google. With all these app stores, which one do you choose?

Humans are creatures of habit and will only shop at a few stores most of the time. That is why places like Walmart, Best Buy, and Amazon have become so popular. The same is true for app stores and Apple has created a winner since it is the only one on the iOS platform. Customers with an iOS device know exactly where to go to get the latest and greatest app for their device. This is not true for Android because there are many app stores to choose from. If one has a Verizon smart phone, you can go to the Google Market, V Cast App Store, or Amazon's New App Store. This creates confusion as to which app store to go to and which apps are the latest and greatest. Some may like having these choices, but most would rather have one place to shop for mobile apps. They just want an easy way to find the app they are looking for. With this clear choice, iOS users will have a better experience compared to Android users. What benefits the user, also benefits the developer.

Apple gives the developers one app store and one unified platform, which makes it easier to build and sell their apps. While Google pushes openness and choice, they sacrifice ease of use and experience. With Android, developers have to support each new device and manufacturer interface change, which just adds to their workload. This work, which could be used to improve the software, is instead used to create different versions for different type of devices. Adding to this workload, developers also have to add their app to multiple app stores and hope to find an audience. Google does not believe that is a big deal, but developers like EA and Gameloft disagree. This fragmentation gives a major advantage for iOS developers to reduce development cost, improve their app, and make more money. Google may not care about making money with software as they make money selling ads, but most developers have families to feed and do care about making money.

Without a clear app store for the Android platform, the platform itself is broken up into smaller audiences. With multiple manufacturers building unique hardware, software and app stores, should we really be counting Android as one platform? No, Android is more of a reference platform that others can use, yet each manufacturer should be counted separately in market share. Apple's app store will continue to dominate by giving users a clear path to find new apps, which unifies the platform. This path will also gives developers the largest audience for their apps, which bring down costs and allows them to make more money.

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