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Did anyone think that Apple, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) would ever count 1.5 billion downloads of applications from its iPhone/iPod App Store? In a little over two years, the iPhone has become a worldwide mobile phenomenon, with three versions so far (the original, the 3G model and now the 3GS). In a little over a year, the App Store that carries 65,000 downloadable programs (give or take) has seen 1.5 billion program downloads.What Apple has created is yet another ecosystem of products and services that mesh so well together that it can't help but be successful. Just like the iPod/iTunes universe that locked customers into a world where the hardware and software worked flawlessly, so does the iPhone/App Store combination. The competition has launched download stores as well, and even Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) has seen some slight success with its BlackBerry App World.
So, the question remains after the marketing glitz wears off, how many of those 1.5 billion downloads were used more than once, and how many are actively being used? Apple would never reveal that kind of information because the biggest selling point on the ecosystem is the number of downloads.
But just like any piece of hardware, a service can have a zillion downloads, but a small percentage may actually use what they download on a regular basis. Regardless of the spread between download quantity and actual practicality, the Apple App Store still solidifies the link to iPhone owners, helping to keep them an iPhone fan. Even if one in 10 downloads from the App Store is useful, that's enough to keep an iPhone customer happy. That's all Apple's goal should be.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
7-16-2009 @ 2:49PM
Beltway Greg said...
I think everyone has missed the point. Many of the apps are free and most are less than a buck. Who cares if you land a plane a few times and then wander off to chase your koi around the pond or whatever else you do? Obviously some of the apps are created not for profit but for fun. People will keep going back to the app store just as they keep going back to ITunes. How many songs are played only once? And in addition, it broadens the community/market for the phone, every other company is racing to develop their own apps so this obviously is a selling point or Palm and RIMM would simply neglect it.
People are not locked into anything; they have a choice and when Apple passes $200 again the analysts will figure that one out too.
Of greater concern, or should I say amusement, is the announcement that Apple called MSFT and told them to stop running those goofy ads which do nothing to promote laptops and everything else to reinforce the idea that they're cheap. How well was this story sourced?
The only number that matters is the performance of the products and the stock over the past five years. The Zune, Vista, etc.....MSFT should run an ad directed towards investors touting how much money they wouldn't have made if they had invested in MSFT during the past five years and how quickly their products become obsolete and cost to maintain. Oh and Palm? They'll be profitable sometime in 2010. Sure, that's a strong hand. RIMM? Dead in the water. Wonder where all that market share, margins, and profitability went? Tune in next week and find out. Until then batfans.