

Ask HN: making money in Apple App marketplace? - appbiz

There are over a quarter of a million offerings in the Apple App Store. Does a newcomer have any realistic chance to make money in this market, or is it over-saturated? Does the Mac App Store offer an opportunity to squeeze in?
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samdalton
The major difference between the iOS store and the upcoming Mac App Store will
be the volume of available apps. The Mac App Store will likely result in a
larger volume of available apps than there are today, but compared to the
sheer numbers on the iOS store, it will still be a small amount. This will
perhaps make it easier for newcomers, but as Davide says, it's down to the
quality of your app and making something that people actually want to have.

There's a chance to make money in either store, but it won't be achieved by
making a better version of an existing app, it will be by making something
that no one's seen before.

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davidedicillo
If you build a great app and you market it well, there's no reason why you
wouldn't succeed. Of course the competition will be hard, but at least you are
targeting an audience with a credit card already on file and one password away
from a purchase. Think about web apps, you are competing with millions of
other sites and you are also asking your user to go get the credit card, punch
in 16 digits, billing address and so. Lot of time to change their mind.

