

RIM promises $10k to devs if BlackBerry 10 app earns $1k - shill
http://devblog.blackberry.com/2012/09/built-for-blackberry-10k-developer-commitment/

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dfrey
RIM must be very confident that nobody will earn more than $1000 from a
BlackBerry app in order to make an offer like this.

Either that or they are just trying to pump up their stock price for the
BlackBerry 10 launch so that the executives can dump their stock before the
company goes bankrupt.

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ajross
Actually, this sounds like a good idea to me. The BB ecosystem, broadly, has
the system architecture to compete with Android and iOS but it lacks the app
availability to make it attractive to customers. Apps have a long tail: there
are a small number of hits (Angry Birds, say -- or things like the Facebook
app) which have the cash available to develop on multiple architecture
already. These will get an extra $10k, which they don't care about and which
RIM can afford (who wouldn't pay $10k for Angry Birds on their platform?).

Then there are the junk apps that live at the bottom of the list. These come
in huge hordes, and are worthless. RIM doesn't want to pay for them and
doesn't care about having them. They provide no value to Apple or Google
either.

But then there's a comparatively small group of "cool" apps that make
everything work. This is the stuff that potential RIM customers notice is
"missing". And the authors would love to see an extra $10k in sales, maybe
enough to consider a port. And there aren't that many of them -- maybe a few
thousand at most. So RIM is betting that if they blow a few million dollars on
seeding this market that they'll make that back in extra handset sales in the
near term. It might work.

But I don't think they're at risk of losing a ton of money. How many apps
actually make that much even on "first tier" platforms?

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azundo
The "Angry Birds" don't even get an extra 10k - if your app makes more than
10k you don't get the payout. I think this is an easy win for RIM for sure.

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RossDM
Build $1 app; purchase 1000 copies; profit!

~~~
veyron
I assume its tied to device, so it's more like:

Build $1 app; purchase 1000 blackberry phones on 1000 contracts; purchase 1000
copies; profit???

~~~
talmand
How about this:

Build $1 app, pay 1000 people $2 each to buy it, collect $8000?

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vandahm
It is entirely possible that I don't know what I'm talking about, but I don't
understand how this plan could possibly work. If developers thought they could
make money writing Blackberry apps, wouldn't they already be writing them?
Since I don't think $10,000 can cover the cost of developing a native app, I
don't see how RIM's bounty would influence a developer's decision to develop
for their platform.

Am I missing something?

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daliusd
Yes, you are missing Symbian developers ;-)

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mindstab
Well this will totally get cut the rope ported... oh wait... it's free...
along with most of my favourite apps....

~~~
chc
I don't follow your point. Is it that you think the glut of free apps will
make it hard for paid apps to compete, or what?

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delinka
Because free apps can't earn $1K, there is no additional incentive to port
free apps as they'd never receive this $10K prize.

~~~
abk
I skimmed the article, but it sounds like free apps that make money through
in-app purchases are still eligible.

~~~
delinka
You are correct. I do not, however, consider an app whose primary
functionality is only available via IAP to be a free app.

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logical42
jeez.. they just continue to find new and innovative ways to lose money

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huxley
Is there anything new to this program? It sounds the same as the one announced
in May ...

[http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2012/05/02/rimm-
pro...](http://blogs.barrons.com/techtraderdaily/2012/05/02/rimm-
promises-10k-per-app-jefferies-says-sell/)

~~~
HorizonXP
Today was the official announcement of the details, guidelines, and dates. No
difference, just that it's more solid now.

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nornagon
So... you have to make an app that's $1,000 good, but not $10,000 good. This
program should be entitled "mutually assured mediocrity."

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albumedia
Most indie developers would not be able to make an app that earn $1k,
especially on Blackberry. Come on, be realistic.

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clarky07
I have no idea how difficult it would be on Blackberry, but I've made > 1k on
over a dozen different apps on iOS. That's really not that hard. Of those,
only a few have made 10k though.

~~~
albumedia
Nice...I'm still hoping to reach that level.

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kyt
So what's the incentive to promote your app past $1,000 in revenue?

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ori_b
Presumably, the ability to make more than $11,000.

~~~
dak1
Actually, it looks like RIM is offering to pay the difference between what
your app earns and $10,000. So if you earn $4,000, they'd pay you $6,000.

So if your app is not going to go past $10,000, there's literally no incentive
to promote it beyond $1,000 (except the enjoyment of knowing so many people
are using your app).

It's not clear what the cutoff date is, although presumably it's the
Blackberry 10 launch. So to maximize profit, you should promote it enough to
earn $1,000 just prior to launch, take your $9,000, then promote it further.

~~~
delinka
Keep in mind these numbers are over a 12 month period. And according to the
fine print, it's a 12 month period of RIM's choosing. If you only sell $1,000
worth over the course of the first 12 months after the launch of BB10, and RIM
decides to hold out for another month, and you sell $6,000 worth in month 13,
they might just cut you a check for $3,000 or decide to wait another month and
see how you do.

IMO, It's not free money though I think it's meant to sound like free money.

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malkia
Make an app that costs $1000 dollars, ask someone to buy it... Profit!

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shyn3
Quality matters. You don't qualify if you earn more than 10k. You qualify if
you earn more than 1k. Therefore if you earn more than 1k and less than 10k
you have created a quality app otherwise your app is junk.

RIM and FAIL are synonyms.

Hire someone for PR please. Your previous commercial dissed your future
phones. The ones without keyboards.

