Developers Show Strong Interest in iPhone Development *Updated*

[Ed Hardy]

In the first few days after Apple released a beta of the iPhone Software Development Kit (SDK), it was downloaded a surprising number of times.

"Developer reaction to the iPhone SDK has been incredible with more than 100,000 downloads in the first four days," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "Also, over one million people have watched the launch video on Apple.com, further demonstrating the incredible interest developers have in creating applications for the iPhone."

Apple iPhone (see larger image)

It should surprise no one that there's such interest in iPhone development; this model is one of the best selling smartphones in the United States, and it's doing fairly well in Europe, too.

Start Developing Today...

The iPhone SDK will give developers access to the same tools for creating applications that Apple's on-house team does.

The tools are free, but to distribute applications, developers will have to be a part of Apple's developer program, which costs $99 to join.

The free beta version of the iPhone SDK (Software Development Kit) can be downloaded from Apple's web site.

...but No Software Releases Until June

Developers will not be allowed to directly distribute their software to iPhone and iPod touch users. Instead, it will all have to go through Apple. And the distribution system won't be in place until late June.

Applications will be sold through either iTunes or directly on the smartphone or handheld. Apple will get 30% of the proceeds from all sales. 

There has been some criticism of Apple's insistence on approving all applications that are released, as it is blocking several types of software, including VoIP applications that use a cellular connection and pornography.

Further criticism has been leveled at Apple since it revealed that third-party iPhone applications will not offer multitasking, but will only be able to run one at a time.

Update

Apple has begun notify individuals and companies if they have been accepted into its iPhone Developer Program, a necessary step to distributing applications.

While some people have been immediately accepted, it seems that most have received a notice that the program is open to only a limited number of developers at this time. Still, these applicants haven't been rejected. Instead, Apple promises to contact them again when the program is open for more developers.

The latter email says:

Dear Registered iPhone Developer,

Thank you for expressing interest in the iPhone Developer Program. We have received your enrollment request. As this time, the iPhone Developer Program is available to a limited number of developers and we plan to expand during the beta period. We will contact you again regarding your enrollment status at the appropriate time.

Thank you for applying.

Best regards,

iPhone Developer Program

Related Articles:

• Apple Gives the Details on iPhone Third-Party Software
• iPhone Apps Will Not Offer Multitasking
• DataViz Optimistic about iPhone Development, StyleTap Slightly Less So

[BrentDC]

As it was noted in a thread in the forums here, the amount of downloads could be vastly inflated by a multitude of things. Some including hobbyists and casual users downloading it (there was a tremendous amount of hype surrounding the availability of the SDK), multiple downloads, competitor downloads, ect. I think we will get a accurate idea of how much real developer interest there is once "the storm has passed" in the coming months.

[Adama D. Brown]

As it was noted in a thread in the forums here, the amount of downloads could be vastly inflated by a multitude of things. Some including hobbyists and casual users downloading it (there was a tremendous amount of hype surrounding the availability of the SDK), multiple downloads, competitor downloads, ect.

I agree. I remember way back in the day when Palm asked you to sign up as a "developer" if you wanted to download the Palm OS Emulator, or later the POS Simulator. Then they boasted about how they had "400,000 developers." Of course, I think I was two or three out of that number, and I can't code my way out of a wet paper bag.

The thing I really wonder about, though, is the 30% fee for listing applications. At that rate, a lot of developers are going to be forced to either overcharge or go without a profit margin.

[questionfear]

I agree. I remember way back in the day when Palm asked you to sign up as a "developer" if you wanted to download the Palm OS Emulator, or later the POS Simulator. Then they boasted about how they had "400,000 developers." Of course, I think I was two or three out of that number, and I can't code my way out of a wet paper bag.

The thing I really wonder about, though, is the 30% fee for listing applications. At that rate, a lot of developers are going to be forced to either overcharge or go without a profit margin.

Yea, there's definitely a lot of "interest" downloaders rather than serious developers.

However, regarding the 30% thing...I am curious if it is really a major impact for a developer, versus having to balance several outlets to sell their product. For example, a Palm OS developer might have their app on Handago, Palmgear, Brighthand Store, and their own personal website. What are the listing fees and costs associated with being spread across several websites, along with the cost to themselves if they choose to sell it directly through their own site?

I am geniunely curious, because I wonder if there is an argument for both sides. You get less freedom from the Apple method, but your costs are controlled and you're not responsible for direct sales and the headaches of "I changed devices/lost my reg code/it didn't send me a code" etc.

I could be totally off base, and it costs little in the way of listing fees and support to be on all those sites, in which case, yes, it's a crazy amount. But I am just curious how costs look in comparison.

[Nevin]

I develop applications for both the Windows Mobile and Palm OS. A couple of things that I have noticed from this thread. The first is that the SDK is free and it is not surprising that alot of developers out of curiosity would like to download and evaluate the SDK. I may download it and take a look at it, but I currently have no intention of developing for Apple (I must admit I do have a bias against Apple after being forced to a take a computer class in university on a Mac, I know they have improved, but if Apple Fanboys are allowed to be unreasonably blind to reality, so am I). The second thing that I think Apple is undervalueing is the hobbiest developer. Many hobbiest like my self are not in it for the money and although they do charge for some of their software, they often offer many freeware apps. The $99 dollar fee charged by Apple along with the "Must be approved by Apple" process and no multitasking is enough to keep a hobbyist like me away. Palm and Microsoft have similar "Approved" programs, but they are optional. I have never went through this process. I get the biggest sales of my software from Palm.com and Pocketgear.com and it costs me nothing to list my software there. The last thing that I would like to mention, is that although the iphone is a great selling smartphone, it is the only one running this OS. As with most Apple products, there is limited hardware variety. When you look at the iphone OS as a developer it is a very small market in comparison to Blackberry, Symbian, Windows Mobile ect. Adroid may also be another player soon. Why develop for such a small market?

[Alfa]

Yea, there's definitely a lot of "interest" downloaders rather than serious developers.

I agree, not eveyone who has downloaded the sdk is going to develop applications.
Anyway, 100000 downloads are impressive considering it works only on Mac which are about only 5-10% of computers worldwide.

[questionfear]

Nevin, thanks for your input! Sadly, even if you wanted to tinker with the SDK as a hobbyist, you'd need a mac to do it...which it sounded from your post like that's not really your thing.

I understand your "limited to one device" argument, but that hasn't stopped many companies from developing for Mac OS in general (even though it is limited to one line of devices from one company.) I think it's more a case of interest and market penetration. If Android doesn't really capture much of the market, then having it on 5 different company's handhelds doesn't really matter. By pure numbers alone, the iPhone has a significant audience.

So it doesn't cost anything to list on Palmgear? Do they take a cut of revenue?

[Alfa]

Nevin, thanks for your input! Sadly, even if you wanted to tinker with the SDK as a hobbyist, you'd need a mac to do it...which it sounded from your post like that's not really your thing.

So it doesn't cost anything to list on Palmgear? Do they take a cut of revenue?

For what I know palmgear and pocketgear takes about 40% and more of revenue but it's free to upload your applications (not like Apple Store where you have to pay a 99 dollar fee even if you upload free applications or you don't sell any copy of your commercial software).

[questionfear]

For what I know palmgear and pocketgear takes about 40% and more of revenue but it's free to upload you applications (not like Apple Store where you have to pay a 99 dollar fee even if you upload free applications or you don't sell any copy of your commercial software).

Gotcha. So let's crunch some numbers.

Let's say I make an application, and I am charging $5.00USD per customer. If I sell 100 of them through the Apple store, I net $350 ($500*30% to Apple), minus the initial $99, for a profit of $251. If I list on pocketgear, and sell the same thing for $5.00 and sell 100 of them, then I net $300 ($500*40%), but I didn't already put $99 so that's my final net.

HOWEVER:

At $1,000 in profit Apple is even with what Pocket Gear is taking, and over $1,000 Apple is offering the better deal. Observe:

If I sell 200 copies of my application, then I net $641 (including my -$99 up front) from Apple and $640 from Pocket Gear. If I sell 500 copies, then I net $1651 from Apple and $1500 from Pocket Gear.

So the $99.00 really creates a higher cut of my business only if I am selling a handful of copies. The more copies I sell (which ideally is linked to how good my product is) the faster I make back the initial $99, the faster I start making more than I would listing on a site taking 40%. It's still not great for a small developer, but it's not so shocking if PocketGear/Palmgear really take 40%. And don't forget the $100mm iFund, which I am sure would be more than happy to help you out with the $99 if they think they'll reap a benefit as well.

As for free applications, Apple isn't charging a listing fee for those either. And the $99 goes to an Apple Developer membership, which a free developer either has or would have interest in anyway, especially since it does give you some decent discounts on software/hardware, and access to tools and helpful information on Mac developing. It's still $99 more than you'd pay for windows mobile or palm, but if you're a mac developer or have an interest in being a developer, the developer membership and its attendant discounts and opportunities can be worth it too. I am addressing this from the point of view that anyone giving away an app is either an experienced developer donating their time, or a student looking to learn more about coding and trying their hand on the iPhone first.

[kanzlr]

and I think its 99,-- ONCE, not per application you want to sell.