We just got back from this year’s LeWeb. We were hoping to meet a lot of “app-people” there, which kind of was not the case regarding actual app developers. However, we met a lot of mobile- and tech-savvy people there and the networking was great. This is our short 8-point recap:

1. We did not get to actually sit through and listen to a lot of the speeches and presentations. There was a lot going on in the hallways. Although on many of the presentations almost every seat was taken, it never felt like the bulk of the conference participants went to see it
2. Maybe the mistake is on our side here, but despite the an app contest and some app related presentations we did not see that many app developers come to the event. Maybe the pricing wasn’t right for them?
3. Almost every person important to the internet-industry seemed to have been there. Especially the amount of “influencers” from the Silicon Valley attending LeWeb was, in our opinion, impressive.
4. As a direct result of three, networking was great. Since we are about to launch a completely new product (this is a hidden announcement), it was great to show it to mobile savvy people and bloggers. The feedback we got was generally very positive.
5. It’s all about mobile. “Mobile” was THE most used tech-word at the conference (okay, maybe a little exaggerated). Of course, a main driver of this was and is the iPhone, so a lot of the discussions off and on stage did make (at least) a reference to mobile apps.
6. With regard to five, we had a lot of discussions on how mobile and the internet connect conceptually and thus overlap. This topic deservers its own post, but the question is an important one: what is so unique about mobile, that it calls for its very own competence and or products? Put simple: how difficult is it for already existing online sites to move into the mobile space? Qype is a good example of going mobile with an existing online service and content.
7. 2010 will be the year of Android phones. Whether it will be the year of Android apps remains to be seen.
8. We had the chance for a quick chat with Erik Lammerding, who is with Apple and responsible for developer relations, as many of you might know. We have discussed the topic of Apple mistreating developers quite few times on this blog, so just on a general note: every employee of Apple we have met so far was very very pro-developer, pro app-diversity and very open for discussion and regarding Apple in general.
 
We tried to make this a Top-10 list, but these eight points basically sum the event up from our point of view. As a bottom line, the event was very well organized, overall impressive and fun, the food was okay and the location was great, so we hope to meet all of you there next year!

PS: For additionaly reviews of LeWeb from other perspectives, have a look here, here and here.

Two days ago we came across this video of the new Google Goggles App. In Google’s own words it is a “Visual Search Application”. You should go and check out the video, we think it is a really cool program. Naturally, it also has a lot of potential for improvement (so it seems), but the basic functionality already appears to provide a lot of utility. Not only can you search by taking a photograph, you can also use the GPS-compass combination to get some really useful augmented reality features, like names and reviews of local businesses in your immediate environment. Bottom line, it’s a great app!

At the same time, it makes clear that Google is planning to become the augmented reality industry leader – at least regarding the search element of augmented reality. This also relates to our blog post on augmented reality, in which we described this particular segment as one with a bright future. Of course, for a company like Google this makes complete sense. But it also means very strong competition for every start-up in the visual search and augmented reality field. Although Google does not really control the Android platform like Apple does the App Store, this has some implications for developers and their choice of platform to develop for.

We talked about this before regarding Apple, when they appeared to be looking for engineers to build gaming apps. It is common sense that large corporations like Google and Apple have in interest in various strategic markets. But the fact that an infrastructure provider (App Store, Android Market) is getting into the market to compete with market participants (app developers) should not necessarily be taken lightly. This will not only shake up the ground base of developers, it is sure to shake up big existing industries, like int the case of Google vs. TomTom.

Again that doesn’t necessarily have to be a bad thing, but it substantiates the point that in the future, besides Apple being able to directly have a say regarding your business destiny, they might also just be following the Google footsteps and enter into your market. And again, we love Apple and the App Store and think it is here to stay in the future, but this is the main reason why for developers, multiple options must be held open (many platforms with user-reach). And for you, the developer, this can only mean: diversify to different platforms when you have the chance.

That said, we will move away from the topic for some time and further focus on what is really important to us: app marketing.

We are at LeWeb in Paris today and tomorrow and are pretty excited about the event. It will host more than 2000 participants from more than 46 countries. We will definitely post a recap of the event, especially regarding mobile and iPhone app topics. Apart from meeting people and exchanging thoughts with others that are in the same industry, these are the events/presentations we will most likely attend (find the entire program here):
 
December 9th

• Fireside Chat with Jack Dorsey, Inventor, Founder & Chairman, Twitter & Loic Le Meur, Founder, Le Web
• LeWeb Iphone App demo By Michael Schneider CEO, Mobile Roadie
• App Star Awards: Iphone apps contest presentation
• Mobile  Apps Roundtable
• Special announcement by Christophe Francois, Vice President Mobile Multimedia,  Orange
• Niklas Zennstrom, Partner, Atomico Ventures
• Fireside Chat with Chad Hurley, Co-Founder & CEO, YouTube & Loic Le Meur, Founder, Le Web
• Workshop: NOKIA: Simpler, bigger, faster. How Nokia brings together millions of  mobile users and web developers!

 
And of course, as much of the Start-Up Competition as well as the Google-Program (especially “Android and Mobile Monetization”), find the entire program here and here (bottom of page).

December 10th

• Tony Hsieh, CEO, Zappos.com
• The rise of emotional Web
• Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
• Timothy Ferriss, Author, The 4 Hour Workweek
• Start-Up Competition Awards Ceremony
• European Gang Live
• Gillmor Gang Live
• Workshop:  PAYPAL X code N’Build (Room#3) – remark: rumors are you get a free netbook for participating.
• “Deep Discussion”: How brands and marketing have to adapt to this new worldwide real time “word of mouth”
• “Deep discussion”: Mobile Apps Opportunities: How to generate revenue?

 
See you there!

We just came across an article over at MobileCrunch and find its content quite shocking. It tells the story of app developer Molinker, which had more than 1,000 iPhone apps on the App Store. Yes, you read that one right: “had”. Because they were pulled of the App Store for faking reviews. To be honest, if the accusations are true (and they appear to be true) in this case pulling the apps seems more than justified.

We know of quite some developers that have “helped”  their app reviews and sales. Some may consider this cheating others might just call it a “promotion technique” or “keeping up with the app joneses”. Of course, basically it is cheating.  And if there were an App Store dictionary the Molinker-logo would probably appear right next to the definition of “review faking”. They appear to have systematically created as many as 90 % of their reviews.

But, although the lines may be blurry and this one was a clear case, it reminds us of some other points, which we wanted to share:

• Dependency on Apple: yes, we already knew it, but this one really makes it clear: all developers are at the mercy of Apple. They have the power to make or break a business in an instant.
• Dependency on you: okay, maybe this is a new one. Apple actually does not need you. If you go wrong and Apple finds out, they will cut you off. And pulling more than one thousand apps is different from pulling a few. But their game, their rules.
• Competition on the App Store is tough and cheaters make it harder for the honest ones (to remain honest). We predict we will see a lot more cheating, “helping out” and the like in the future.

 
Think differently? Let us know.

The IDC has released its „Top 10 Predictions“ for 2010 and there are some interesting notes regarding mobile in it. It also shares a lot of insights concerning the IT-Industry and what we are to expect from 2010 with regard to developments in the telecommunications sector. For mobile related topics, you should go and have a read through numbers 5 and 7.

Here’s a short summary of what we found interesting in it:

• The IDC predicts that in 2010, more than 1 billion mobile devices will be accessing the internet, compared to 1.3 billion PCs, which basically means mobile is growing 2.5 times faster than the stationary internet
• We will have at least 300.000 iPhone apps by the end of 2010. A lot of them will come from Global 2000 businesses and consumer brands. An interesting implication for who the players on these and other platforms will be
• Android is coming up strong…kind of: 50,000- 75,000 apps for Android by end of 2010. Quite a number.
• The “iPad” will arrive! Finally, an Apple tablet. The size will be rather like “an oversized iPod Touch than a downsized Mac”, but still, the potential here is huge.
• Over 200 million smartphones (or devices with the ability to run third-party applications) will be shipped in 2010. That is some market share growth and it likely will not stop. While it will be at 16% in 2010, until 2012 the IDC estimates it will reach 20%.
• Prices for smartphones will continue to drop: “look for more sub-$150 smartphone to come on the scene in 2010, accelerating the market”.

 
So there you have it: mobile is here and we are in the middle of a lot of changes and developments. Exciting!

An exciting week has passed and Christmas is coming closer and closer. This week was interesting and next week will be even more eventful (at least we hope so) with apprupt at LeWeb in Paris. Want to meet and chat about the iPhone app universe? Drop us a line, please.

Anyways, here is what you might or might not have missed these last 7 days.

• Dutch eBuddy has launched a premium iPhone app – not the cheapest, so it will be interesting how this plays out for them
• In the U.S., mobile titles now make up 3 percent of overall gaming spending – this number is sure to grow even more in the future
• App Store traffic massively increased over Thanksgiving week(end) – holidays in general appear to be a great chance for you to push your app sales. Here’s another good example.
• Gizmodo has the best iPhone apps of the week for you
• Not directly iPhone related: Apple has acquired LaLa, rumors are the reason was LaLa’s engineering talent.
• And if you happen to be at or somewhere near the University of Michigan on the 9th of december, don’t miss the iPhone Orchestra live-performance

 
Have a great weekend!

Not to repeat ourselves as we have been emphasizing on this blog that we believe we are only at the beginning of a huge mobile revolution, but sometimes it seems the iPhone is already at its peak in terms of devices sold per quarter and apps being downloaded per month. The sheer amount of apps that users pull onto their iPhones is overwhelmingly impressive. Rather than the iPhone continuing it’s market leadership it sometimes seem most probable that this development could be repeated by other mobile platforms, such as Android.

But really, where is the iPhone going? Is it overhyped or is there room for more? Well, just from the gut feeling, all the hype-news and huge numbers have been mixed up with quite some negative PR lately. There were and still are so many issues and topics related to developers having problems with Apple’s approval process that maybe we tend to forget that the iPhone is still sold by one operator exclusively (in most countries). Basically, it is common sense,  that once the iPhone is sold by more than one operator per country, adoption of the device will probably explode. Additional data plans for the user and cheaper device prices will be the main drivers of this.

So, after thinking out loud about other platform in the last few posts, we wanted to make a case for the iPhone again: 2010 will probably be huge for Android.  It will most definitely be huge for the iPhone. O2 has already given up it’s exclusivity (or rather was forced to do so) and with AT&T losing its exclusivity in 2010, additional operators will most likely be offering it in the United States as well (though this might not be that easy). If these markets follow in the footsteps of France, sales will double. Yes, double.

Of course, 2010 will be the year of mobile in general. But still, it is our believe that the iPhone will come out on top.

Are you using special events and dates, such as holidays, to promote your app in a certain way? If not, you should probably start doing so. This article by FierceMobile refers to statistics that claim that compared to last year the traffic to the Apple US-App Store increased by 57 percent during Thanksgiving week. For the week compared to the first three of November, traffic growth was at 43 percent. Also interesting: app usage during Black Friday was up by 59 percent. Why does this happen?

Well, there could be many reasons, but the most logical explanation is probably people (iPhone owners) simply having more time for using the device and browsing through the App Store. Another one could be special offers and topic-related apps. The term “special offer” mostly refers to an app purchase price drop for a certain period of time. To us this makes a lot of sense in order to push sales in the short run without generally confusing the user with an unusual pricing move.

Another way of promoting apps during certain times appears to be the combination of a special offer and a special website, set-up to offer (link to) different apps. Of course, developers have to “join forces” to make this interesting for the user. A German example of this is the website www.appsforsale.de, which offered different apps around the Easter time and is now up with a new design and a Christmas app-calendar. Another (more international) example of this is appventcalendar.com. We know, for example, that the Easter-sale on appsforsale did have an effect on app sales for the participating developers. We are not sure, if this effect actually made up for the price drop that every developer had to show in order to take part. But, as a bottom line, you definitely shouldn’t miss trying things like this out.

If you know more of these kinds of sales-initiatives, let us know. Also, it would be interesting to hear what you experience has been so far. Let us know in the comments or contact us directly.

We wanted to pick up a topic which we haven’t talked about at all until now, but is one that is of relevance to us when thinking about extending our service in the future: developing for multiple platforms / operating systems.

We know that a lot of you developers have come from developing for another (mobile) platform and there are many (gaming) companies out there who have completely moved their focus from developing for multiple platforms (mostly Symbian) to the iPhone / iPod Touch. So to us, it is a little weird even raising this question. The topic then is probably not whether to stop developing for one platform in favor of another but rather to develop for Android and/or Blackberry (or any other) additionally.

Of course, this decision can only have one basis: sales to be made from selling apps for the platform, thus sales potential, right? However, potential sales to be made or potential customers to reach are in most cases never the same as actual sales or people reached.  In other words, the potential market to reach should not be mistaken with a 100% probability of actually reaching it. The competitive landscape is a big factor when considering for which platform to develop. Take for example the recent launch of Sidebar, which debuted for Android and not for the iPhone. Why? Well, probably not because of the absolute sales/download potential (as of now), but rather because of the higher probability of actually generating a satisfactory amount of sales.

In our mind, there is no doubt that 2010 will be the year of Android, with a lot of devices hitting the market and also a lot more apps coming out. Although, so far, no device has really been able to compete with the iPhone, the combination of the sheer amount of different smartphones running on Android and the increased quality of these devices, in our opinion, will make the difference. But of course, the more this progresses the harder the competitive environment and gaining visibility will get. So in the mid-term, choosing one platform over the other might be a zero sum game. We know for sure that this question will answer itself within the next few years. But for the here and now, this is an important decision to be made by any app developer. What do you think?

These are again some thoughts on monetization strategies for apps. As we all know, monetizing an app (or the app development work) is key, not only to creating a business, but also for being able to actually spend some money on customer acquisition.

We talked to a developer recently, who is still in the process of finding out how he should further earn money with the acquired customers. Not only for the purpose of making more money, but also as a means of rewarding his ongoing efforts and work that went into the app over time. The app is a navigation product and is not something that can easily be monetized by using In-App Purchase for additional services. At the same time, the app is a product that, once bought, is used on a regular basis and provides a utility for the long term. For the developer this means that it does not only take constant updates and improvements on the app itself, it also takes a fair amount of customer service and communication with the user base. Up until now the users have received all the updates for free or, let’s say, as included in the initial purchase price.

The developer is now thinking about releasing a major new version of the app and is more or less unsure whether to charge for it or just give it away for free. From his point of view, asking for a new purchase is justified as it rewards a. an ongoing effort and b. though it will basically still be the same product it will be much more useful and different in many ways from the original app.

Tweetie is a very good example of charging for upgrades and, in our opinion, it seemed justified.  However, charging for the new version of Tweetie caused a lot of discussion and negative remarks from many sides. What do you think is the right decision? After all, app developers are at the mercy of the customers that buy their products, are they not?