April 4th, 2010
Warning: This post may have a slight taste of jealousy when you bite into it at first but I tried my best to only use a teaspoon.
iPhone was, as Scott Forstall recently put it, a gold rush for developers. Simple, relatively inexpensive applications for iPhone that hit the top paid, popular or featured lists on the App Store have made some serious dough for their developers. This caused a lot of developers to focus on iPhone either exclusively or in addition to their offerings for either the Mac or PC. They’ve spent a considerable amount of time focused on iPhone app development.
iPad is creating a similar environment. iPhone applications are being ported over to iPad and new applications are being developed and released as quickly as possible – and exclusively for iPad. A lot of time and effort is going into building these applications and I’m sure it will mean a lot of money in the pockets of developers.
You can’t blame the developers for going where the money is but I fear for the future of Mac software and I’m even beginning to fear for iPhone’s. I fear that one day all of the great work, the great applications, the incredible design will have migrated exclusively to iPad. That may not happen for some time and people are still making some serious money on making both Mac and iPhone applications – but the tide is definitely on its way out to the iPad sea.
I sometimes sit and wonder what sort of applications could have been made for the Macintosh if, say, Apple had opened up an App Store that supported iPhone, iPad, and Mac? Would the river of money have been split into three smaller tributaries? Would people flock to the Mac the same way they have iPhone and now iPad? Arguably the main reasons people buy iPhones and iPads is the ease of finding/installing software and content. Imagine if things were that easy on the Mac. And imagine if developers were excited to build applications for the Mac again!
Apple isn’t out of position yet to make this happen. With a single move, adding Mac software to the App Store, they could start a gold rush for Macintosh developers the way they have for iPhone and iPad developers. Unlike iPhone and iPad, though, it should be just another way to download applications – not the only way to do so. This way both developers and consumers could decide how to get applications themselves and not be forced one way or the other. I think, ultimately, developers would decide to distribute their applications through the App Store because that is how users would choose to get their applications but at least they’d have the choice. Wouldn’t that be great?
But this may never happen and that is why I fear for the future of Mac software.
I don’t know–the indie software that I rely on the most on my Mac is stuff like TextMate, which really has no market on a mobile device. I also can’t imagine a company like Panic stopping Mac development.
A Mac App store might be nice, but only if it wasn’t the only way to install apps.
I do not see Panic stopping Mac development either but they’ve certainly halted it in favor of developing an application for the iPad. And so have many other indie software development companies.
And don’t bring up Textmate. You’re fortunate that you can still use that abandoned application. But you won’t be able to forever.
I bring up TextMate because it is pretty much the reason I switched to a Mac, and it’s also the best text editor I have ever used (and yes, I’ve tried Coda
. To be honest, I could care less if TM2 ever comes out, because I really haven’t found any feature that I’m missing in the current version.
I have never postulated that Coda is better than Textmate. Just that Coda, and just about any other editor, is far better supported than Textmate. And by supported I mean updated.
Also, something I forgot to mention: in order to develop for the iPhone or iPad, developers use a Mac, which means they will always need software for that OS. Indie devs typically are “scratching their own itch”, so if in the process of developing an iPad/iPhone app, they find that some piece of Mac software is missing, they’d be likely to try and make it themselves.
Agreed. However, would they spend more time developing a $.99 application that would make them a few hundred thousand dollars or a $20 application that may or not make them a few hundred thousand dollars?
I think developers would lean towards that which they are hearing the most success stories about right now. Even if they have an itch, they’ll be willing to scratch someone else’s back for dollars.
Considering the iPad/iPhone is so limited in its function, it’s crazy to think that software developers would cease developing for the Mac. I think what we’ll begin, and already have begun seeing is Mac software and iPad/iPhone apps working in tandem in innovative ways. Not only will we be paying $20+ for boxed software but also $0.99 – $1.99 for apps that will interface either directly or over the net with our Mac software.
Digital distribution of software is a necessary step. Apple is fortunate to have set up a system where they can implement this in several ways to increase profitability to the developer and Apple. One way is bundling the software and the compatible app. These kind of impulse decisions consumers make are big business. If you’re going to spend $20 for software, what’s another $0.99 to extend that functionality to your iPhone or iPad?
Moreover, digital distribution through iTunes may prevent multiple installs on unregistered machines. Another way Apple and the developer could increase profits is by adding additional licenses for $5 on a $20 piece of software. It’s not a bad deal for the consumer and it’s a better deal for the developer.
If Apple begins distributing software through iTunes, there is a lot of opportunity for developers to make a lot of money on the Mac. I’m 100% on board with digital distribution, in fact, most of my software was distributed digitally. Though, if I’m spending $1000 on a piece of software, I want a physical copy.
Jason: I think you’re on the right track here – distributing software via iTunes and/or having app bundles. But I don’t think they will need to do the licensing model. They already allow applications to be installed on multiple devices (ie. if I buy an app my wife gets the app by osmosis). This model seems to work pretty well.
Pingback: Steve Jobs says “Nope” to Mac App Store | That's what I thought.