

Apple Reportedly Rejecting Apps With Pay-Per-Install Campaigns - gyardley
http://gigaom.com/2011/04/19/apple-reportely-rejecting-apps-with-pay-per-install-campaigns/

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kogir
I really hope this is true. Nothing frustrates me more than how much being in
the top 50 matters, combined with how easy (if expensive) it is to game.
Weighting anonymous, real usage information would be a huge boon and make
rankings infinitely more useful.

Though I suppose it's only a matter of time until that too is gamed.

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jobu
This doesn't solve anything. The "problem" is that it's very difficult to
match people up with apps they will like. Apple gives you two options:
1)search box 2)look at the Top lists

The search box is horrendous, and makes it difficult to find an app even if
you already know the name. The top lists contain a few gems, but are mostly
filled with crap I would never use (especially the free).

The companies "gaming" the top free list were trying to work within this
framework to get their apps out there and noticed. Some apps do well and stay
on the list organically after the install campaigns, and others drop like a
rock. I don't think these install campaigns are a great option, but there
isn't a better marketing tool at this time. The best thing Apple can do to
combat this is improve their search interface.

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glhaynes
There are also many featured (top-billed, "New and Noteworthy", "Staff
Favorites", etc) apps and, at least on the iPad, there's a "Genius" function
that recommends apps based on what's on your device already. I agree the store
could be considerably better, though.

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r00fus
They should have done this months ago.

A large portion the top-rated apps in Games category have completely
perfunctory reviews that are content-free with 100% positive (because no who
doesn't get paid installs/reviews the app).

Compare and contrast with unique high-rated games like "Battleheart" or "Sword
& Poker", where the reviews reveal a lot about the game mechanics.

When the App Store ratings become meaningless, I'm forced to use outside
channels to "filter" my searches, and that puts Apple's power into someone
else's hands (not to mention annoy users).

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nixarn
I think Apple should just changed their algorithm and not ban these systems.
You can always buy users anyway (by ads and similar).

TapJoy works really well with some games, allows for customers who are unable
to buy stuff to still get access to premium content which in returns gives the
developer a profit to fuel future development & games.

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DevX101
Bad news for this guy: <http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2318859>

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kumph
That's me. And actually, it's ok. I never expected this revenue stream would
last forever, and it's the core business --- the app recommendations ---
that's crucial. That's going well. We've got tons of happy users, a few great
engineers, some cash in the bank, and several interested investors. In the
long, in fact, this move by Apple will only accentuate the need for a good app
discovery engine to help find everything outside of the top-50.

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mikek
The best quote from the article:

"And it’s good, Tapjoy said, for publishers, who are able to monetize users
who wouldn’t otherwise pay."

So basically, Tapjoy admits that developers are paying them to send them users
who don't pay for apps... so that they can be monetized by more Tapjoy
installs. Pay-per-install is a huge pyramid scheme.

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jws
Guilty.

I've been playing Gunner Galaxies HD, and have probably downloaded a dozen
apps, then deleted them after one launch just to get in game upgrades.

~~~
j79
Hopefully that's something Apple can monitor as well?

There have only been a handful of apps that I've downloaded and deleted right
away. Most were in the Top 50 listing with low ratings. Curiosity was the main
factor for me downloading. But the turnaround time for deleting was almost
instant. I never understood how a 2 star app could be #5 on a list with other
apps that ranked 4/5. If Apple could monitor apps that are downloading and
instantly deleted (or deleted within 10 minutes of being downloaded), maybe
they could knock them down a few spots (until they eventually fall off the
rankings...)

