Ask YC: Mobile application developers- use GetJar?

[hv23]

I'm trying to better understand the mobile application distribution ecosystem, which GetJar.com and other sites play in. It seems to me like GetJar is the leader of this space (any opinions about that?) and I'm hoping to find some more information about it.

Do any mobile application developers on the Java, Flash Lite, Blackberry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, or Palm platforms have experience using this site to distribute and test beta versions of your application? If so, what type of experience have you had with this site, and have you paid for premium spots or used their Pay Per Download program? How valuable is the beta testing community, and is the feedback they offer any good?

Are there any other mobile app distribution sites you would recommend, that have either similar or superior download rates to GetJar?

Thanks a lot, I've been digging but haven't been able to find too much information about this topic.

[jsjenkins168]

To be honest, the only mobile application distribution site which will likely matter in a year will be the iPhone AppStore. Its likely to go live this month. Google has mentioned they will come out with their own app distribution site for Android but it is unclear when this will be or how much impact it will have.

The iPhone is going global and with the carrier subsidies, it will be cheap. My suggestion is to focus your efforts there.

[aggieben → jsjenkins168]

To be honest, the only mobile application distribution site which will likely matter in a year will be the iPhone AppStore.

That doesn't seem likely to me. As popular as the iPhone is and will be, the millions of Blackberries and Palms and WindowsCE units out there aren't simply going to disappear, and in the aggregate will account for greater market share than the iPhone.

[hv23 → aggieben]

Right, as impressive as the iPhone's early showing has been, and despite the fact that it IS steadily gaining market share, the fact remains that it still holds only a small percentage of overall smartphone market share, in the US and even more so worldwide. The same is likely to hold true with Android- the fact that the mobile industry is so heavily controlled by the carriers who are resistant to change and proliferation of handsets is going to make it hard for any one platform or phone to completely dominate the market.

The fact remains that mobile developers need to concentrate their efforts on a variety of platforms, so my question is- once they build their apps, where do they go to get mass distribution? After doing some more reading, it seems like GetJar mostly occupies a niche as a mass beta-testing service-- what other places are useful for developers to get distribution and gain traction?

[aggieben → hv23]

Maybe this is an opportunity for a startup :-)