During the keynote address at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference earlier this month, Phil Schiller noted that Apple's Mac App Store, launch in early January, has rapidly risen to become the top selling distribution channel for computer software, beating out Best Buy, Walmart, and Office Depot. According to Schiller:
In the last six months, something incredible has happened. In the last six months, the Mac App Store has now become the #1 PC software channel for buying software. That's incredible.
But questions have remained about just how successful the Mac App Store has been, given the smaller installed base compared to iOS and long-standing alternative methods for purchasing software.
Developer Martin Schultz has, however, now provided a look at sales figures for his Hard Rock Racing app, which managed to peak as the #3 paid game and #14 overall paid app in the U.S. earlier this month after being featured by Apple in the "New and Noteworthy" section on the front page of the Mac App Store. According to Schultz, that stellar ranking translated into only 743 sales on the peak day.
While that one-day performance resulted in a solid $2,500 payday for Schultz after Apple's 30% cut of revenue, it's clear that Mac App Store sales fall far short of those seen for iOS apps. We spoke with John Casasanta of iOS developer taptaptap, who shared that his Camera+ application typically pulls in 8,000-12,000 downloads per day when it is ranked around #14 in the overall paid apps for the iOS App Store. Of course, 743 sales on peak day may be better than Schultz might have done through traditional channels or direct online sales. The average sales price for iOS apps also appears to be much lower than Mac Apps, which may also contribute to the volume discrepancy.
Apple is of course working hard to drive adoption of the Mac App Store, opting to distribute its forthcoming OS X Lion exclusively through the store. The company has also released its new Final Cut Pro X apps and other titles such as Aperture, iWork, and iLife through the store. With the Mac App Store set to take on an even larger role in OS X Lion with the addition of such features as in-app purchases and push notifications, Apple is clearly pushing forward in its attempts to replicate the success of the iOS App Store on the Mac platform.
Top Rated Comments
Your posts disgust me.
What are your reasons for not using it? Don't purchase/download software on a regular basis?
I am sure it will gain heavy traction after Lion is being used everywhere, and people start buying new Macs w/ Lion preinstalled.
I prefer downloading the MAS version of apps if they exist, much easier for updates/installations. No DMGs to worry about discarding of.
I love that this sentence means absolutely nothing, but was written with the intention of sounding intelligent and informed.
Could not agree more.
The other sizable source of revenue for the iOS store is the games market. I'm not gaming on my Mac Mini when I'm at my desk -- if I'm at home, its either on my windows box or my 360.
There's a false equivalency if you want to compare Mac App Store sales versus iOS App Store sales.
If you want Mac software you'll have to pay more than iOS. The prices in the iOS App Store are low - users have been spoiled, but unfortunately some expect to pay the same for more feature spec'd Mac software.
LTD posts are nothing more than attention seeking. In a recent FCPX thread he was posting messages of "where's my retina display iPad".
:rolleyes: