Steve Jobs recently revealed in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that, users have downloaded more than 60 million applications from the iTunes App Store in its first month online. While most apps downloaded were free, Jobs revealed that the App Store saw $30 million in sales over the first month, averaging $1 million a day.
Game titles account for over 25% of the App Store’s current catalog of 1620 apps and game downloads were no small part of the overall sales. SEGA saw over 300,000 downloads of its popular accelerometer-controller maze game Super Monkey Ball [$9.99, App Store] in just 20 days–that’s $3 million in sales.
“That’s a substantial business," says Simon Jeffery, president of Sega’s U.S. division. “It gives iPhone a justifiable claim to being a viable gaming platform."
Mac Rumors recently reported that Eliza Block, a PhD student and independent developer who created the popular 2 Across [App Store] crossword puzzle game, saw early sales of around $1,800 per day.
The iTunes App Store and its large library of quality applications created with Apple’s free iPhone SDK make up what is certainly the most significant component of “iPhone 2.0" and truly set the iPhone apart from other smartphones and mobile devices. At the current rate, Apple stands to see the store generate $360 million a year in revenue. “I’ve never seen anything like this in my career for software," Jobs commented.
With the iTunes App Store, Apple has removed the barrier to entry for developers and transformed mobile application deployment–a heretofore woefully archaic arena–into a painless user experience. It’s really no wonder that the App Store has been so well received. We’re anxious to see what the bright future hold for iPhone games and applications.
