Alex Kaminski's Blog
Audentes fortuna juvat.
November 17, 2008
Can you make a living off iPhone apps?
Filed under : Uncategorized
Andy Finnell writes that iPhone app developers must abandon the $0.99 price that many apps are selling for these days.
Andy calculates that a developer who wants to make a living off an
iPhone app (at $40k/year) must sell 196 apps per day to do that. He
also calculates that at $9.99 per app, you'd need to sell 16 apps per
day to do that.
Now instead of analyzing how much money we (app developers) can make off these apps. Let's just go ahead and make some great apps and focus on the money later.
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I'm a hacker, entrepreneur, aspiring author. Currently co-founder @ a stealth travel startup. I previously founded Socialblaze, acquired by Martin Jay Digital. Want to contact me? Send me an email.
I also make short posts and share links on alexkaminski.posterous.com. |
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2 Comments so far ...
Unfortunately if you're trying to do it for a living you can't really just cross your fingers and hope that the money will come later. If typical sales are in two digits and you need four to keep you in Macs, gadgets and housing then it's just not going to happen. As Andy Finnell suggests, professional developers will leave the App Store leaving only hobbyists and software will not evolve as new and exciting alternatives to the iPhone come along.
Comment on November 18, 2008 05:35 amI totally see your point, but I am a believer in Paul Graham's “Make something people want. Don't worry too much about making money.” mantra. I think that if you make an app that people actually want, you will have no problem selling it or monetizing it through ads, sponsors, or partnerships.
Comment on November 18, 2008 06:09 am