HN user
I helped create the report, happy to answer questions and collect feedback for future reports.
Also, don’t sleep on the accompanying podcast where RevenueCat CEO, Jacob, and I share a lot more nuance and insights that didn’t make it into the report.
https://subclub.com/episode/hows-your-app-really-doing-the-s...
I just finished a followup post, since the one originally linked is over 2 years old.
I started to reply to your comment and ended up writing a whole blog post in agreement: http://appcubby.com/blog/free-and-low-cost-apps/
I addressed the "it's just a free market" rebuttal in a previous post: http://appcubby.com/blog/app-store-pricing/
Short answer: it's not a free market. The design of the App Store and Apple's policies surrounding it have significantly shaped the market.
Don't you see the problem there. The developers who build crap apps end up being rewarded the same as those who build great apps. Essentially, you're saying that you do pay $5 for a great app because you buy 5 and keep 1, but the developer who built the app you like gets just $1. That sucks.
I don't mind. Thanks! Since the site is mostly an ad for my apps, I thought I'd have some fun with a graphics heavy approach.
Careful, that's my son you're talking about... just because I'm brainwashing him into a life-long obsession with Apple, doesn't mean he's someone you wouldn't like. ;)
david
Well, technically Apple is regulating the distribution, which is factor of supply. I'm not an economist and may be mixing certain terms, but the bottom line is that I can't sell an app directly to a customer, so the App Store is inherently not a free market. Therefore, Apple IS regulating the supply of my products! How much is debatable, but as someone who has several apps in the store, and talks quite frequently with other developers, I'd say my argument in the blog post is the reality of the current market.
Also, the charts are "voodoo" in their ability to create exposure for an app. You have to have enough sales to first get into the charts, but once you're there, it's amazing how things change. I've had developers describe it as being "sucked" up into the top 10. There is an undeniable momentum that is created once you break the top 50.
As far as changing how the charts work, did you read my blog post? What I suggested is that apps be ranked by volumeprice or even (2volume)*price to calculate the rankings. That's no easier to game then the current system. People have to buy the app either way, and raising the price will only benefit apps that have enough value to warrant a higher price. The idea of the App Store charts is to get the best apps in front of people. My argument is that by ranking only by price, you're getting cheap apps in front of people, not necessarily the best ones. By taking price into account, amazing niche market apps that can demand a higher price will get the same exposure as a broad market $.99 app.
I definitely agree that search needs work, but even with search, there has to be an order in which they are displayed. For a long time it was also volume. Recently it changed, but I can't find any pattern to it. With a ton of crappy apps in the store, showing search results in a random order doesn't help the consumer. Popular apps should still be rewarded with good placement. I'm just questioning how that popularity is determined.
"Free markets contrast sharply with controlled markets or regulated markets, in which governments directly or indirectly regulate prices or supplies, which distorts market signals according to free market theory."
I'd say my assessment is pretty right on.
david
App Cubby
More assumptions. The App Store does not conform to any discernible business norms. The downward slope looks grim, but sales can bounce back at any moment and for any number of reasons. One of which is that we will be featured on wired.com tomorrow!
We've got some amazing new features that will be released before the end of the year (again, already paid for), and could spark another few weeks of above average sales. Even if the sales don't bounce back to the peak levels, we're leveraging our existing code base and will be releasing several new apps in the coming months.
As far as my long term plans... did you read the whole article? I said that I'm NOT going to do any major marketing until something changes. I'm focusing my efforts on what has worked so far: creating great apps and working with Apple and the press to get free marketing.
It was meant to be an overly simplistic look at the finances, not an actual financial statement (notice the nice round numbers). I didn't make this clear in the post, but our third app is already paid for and will be released soon. I'm not out of the woods yet, I know that, but I'm headed the right direction. And that's saying something in the App Store at the moment.
David - App Cubby