To charge or not to charge?

It’s a question that we have discussed a few times here on the AppsGeyser blog, should you be charging for your Android app once it hits the app store? There is no clear answer and the truth beholds only...

With the release of iOS 6 for Apple mobile devices, developers and ad networks are finding that they will need to implement a new strategy when developing and advertising their latest apps.

This was apparent as reports trickled in about the changes that occurred to Apple’s App Store.

The App Store redesigned

Once the users finished testing out the new iOS 6 options, they were eager to find all their favourite apps and new apps to install into the extra row on their app home screens.

Unfortunately, they...

Two new European IT Outsourcing Intelligence Reports 2012 have just been published, this time covering Sweden and Norway.

The reports are based on the respective country-specific surveys conducted between September and October 2012 and highlight significant differences in the ways companies approach IT / software development outsourcing in these two neighboring countries:

Outsourcing destinations

Google has launched Google Play seller support in India, added the world’s second most populous country to the list of regions where paid Android apps can be sold.

The news was announced in a post on the Android Developers Blog, with various reasons given for the development.

Extending to the Indian market is really a no-brainer for Google, as the blog post explains. India is now in the top five global markets for app...

Be careful what you say, the App Store police is onto you

Game developer Terry Cavanagh had his game, Don’t Look Back, rejected from the App Store for a potentially unique reason: the game’s accompanying text carried negative opinion about in-app purchases.

The 8-bit platform game was submitted to various app stores with the following description from Cavanagh: “A game about fantasy, Don’t Look Back is short game I made in 2009.

“This is a completely free game, not “free to...

How can game developers get an organically growing user base, happy gamers and profit?

It’s a lethal cocktail, and it’s not unreasonable to think that only the very biggest game companies need apply. But there are plenty of good practices devs can utilise, as discussed by a panel of experts at Apps World from companies such as Microsoft, Millennial Media, Tag Games Limited and Papaya Mobile.

One of the clearest messages which came out was that the commercial, monetary aspect needs to be looked at...

Those musing on the business machinations of Dalton Caldwell’s paid-for, developer-friendly social network will have their curiosity satisfied with the “App.net Developer Incentive Program”.

A process which “actually incents the creation of innovative, imaginative and useful apps”, App.net is paying out $20,000 (£12,300) a month to developers whose apps developed on the API received the best user feedback.

Each month, beginning on 1 October, App.net members will get an...

Generating revenue from your app is turning out to be one of the toughest challenges a developer faces.  There are so many different options, whether it is an out-of-app solution, banner ads, push notifications, etc., It can be overwhelming to choose from the many available options. No matter what you choose, you should keep in mind these three tips on your way to being an app millionaire.

Planning

Monetization should be a part of your app even before writing the first...

A new survey from the App Developers’ Alliance has revealed that only half of people who have downloaded apps have ever paid for them.

The survey of 1000 US consumers who own or use at least one device able to run apps, showed that, in the next six months, a third of current app users want to use apps more often, and a third of those who don’t use apps are planning on using them.

Perhaps worryingly, the survey notes “cost and lack of understanding” as reasons for not using...

Research in Motion (RIM) unveils its “10k Developer Commitment”, which guarantees devs $10,000 (£6,300) if their BB10 app is successful enough.

According to the commitment rules, once developers get an app approved through the Built for BlackBerry program – which is RIM’s standard for high quality and performance – if it makes $1,000 (£630) through BlackBerry’s App World or through the payment SDK, RIM will round it up to $10,000.

RIM purportedly sees $10,000 as...

Dalton Caldwell’s App.net, the social network designed as a paid-for, developer-friendly Twitter, has bolted past 250,000 posts amid the launch of an iOS app.

According to an App.net post by Caldwell, approximately half of the posts are from third party clients.

The iOS app, AppNet Rhino, is a collaboration between Planet 1107 and TwinkleTap, and is available from the App Store with a three star rating thus far. Buffer, a post...

Mobile Mothers in the US are an increasingly important demographic for marketers. According to BSM media, U.S. moms control $2.4 trillion in household purchases every year and wield greater influence over most everyday buying decisions. As avid users of digital media, mothers are turning to smartphones to help organize their activities.

Their ability to research purchases combined with their spending power gain marketers’ attention and provides a great opportunity for marketers to engage with moms in a...

Has the App.net funding drive forced Twitter into action?

Clutch.io, the native mobile A/B testing tool, has been snapped up by Twitter for an undisclosed amount.

The two-man staff, Eric Florenzano and Eric Maguire, has been acquired by the social media giants, alongside the IP, and will commence work as part of Twitter’s growth and international team.

The duo was previously with chat app Convore, a Y Combinator alumnus.

Alongside the ability to add A/B testing to a mobile app, Clutch.io’s...

Is App.net really the "service we all wish existed"?

App.net, an alternative social network with developers in mind which aims to usurp the more established sites, has gone past its $500,000 funding target with only hours to spare, as eager developers already start to build apps for the network.

The start-up founded by Dalton Caldwell, with the tagline "help us create the service we all wish existed", has as its main goal the vision to create a social network without ad support, and build a service...

The news that Facebook has acquired bookmarking startup Spool appears to be another story of Facebook acquiring a developer to pinpoint their mobile strategy.

But does it align with their current trends?

It would appear so. Browsing app tool Spool - which enables users to bookmark content for both online and offline use and saves videos and content for future reference - is migrating to the Silicon Valley social giant.

“We are extremely excited to accelerate our vision and help Facebook’s users...

Top mobile advertising tips for mobile apps developers

Mobile developers rarely create apps out of the kindness of their hearts: they want to make money out of a market that the IAB estimates at $5.3 billion globally.

But while mobile developers can create their apps easily enough, they may not be experts at monetising them. If you’re a developer who wants direction, here are some key points to consider when incorporating ads.

The basics: Clickthrough rate x price x fill rate

Clickthrough rate is most...

There’s a lot of talk about improving your ranking in Google Play, and that’s not a bad thing to be concerned about, but the talk forgets something very important.

Most people aren’t browsing categories; they’re searching for a specific app or type of app. 75% of users who enter Google Play and end up downloading an app get to that app through searching, not browsing.

This...

Facebook is introducing subscription billing for apps in a move that should boost the revenues of game and app developers, as well as adding to its own coffers via a 30% cut.

From July, developers will be able to implement subscription plans, offering updated content and a premium experience for their most loyal, fee paying users, establishing a recurring revenue stream on top of the already existing one-time payments.

The least developers can charge for a monthly subscription will be $1.

“This new feature will be available to all Facebook.com and mobile web...

Interactive TV will become a vital part of shoppers’ lives by the end of 2014 alongside image recognition and augmented reality, a report claims.

The report from Conlumino, commissioned by eBay, claims that as a result of “a third wave of technological revolution", each of the 10 largest UK retailers would have additional sales of £235m.

The research notes increased development in image recognition software, in particular utilising quick response (QR) codes to...

The meteoric rise in the popularity of apps has not translated into spending behaviour with users, new research has confirmed.

Over 70% of smartphone users spend little or nothing on mobile apps, according to US analyst firm ABI Research, with the top-spending 3% of users generating 20% of app revenue.

Among these paying users, the mean spend was $14 per month. However, the median amount among the consumers who spend money on apps is much lower than that average, just $7.50 per month.

“This reflects the...