There’s an app store for that
In an effort to catch up to Adobe and outdo everyone else, Google has announced that they now have two app stores. Google’s new app marketplace is targeted at enterprise users of it’s app suite and allows web applications to be integrated into Google’s menu bar and authenticate users with their Google login. The developer can host their web app wherever they want and is not required to integrate into google’s app suite any further than implement the single login. The app will then be linked to from the customer’s google menu when logged in. Applications will have access to an enhanced set of api’s for google applications so developers will be able to create apps that are tightly integrated into gmail, google calendar and the rest.
Application marketplaces have become a major battlefront in the war for platform market share being waged right now. Assuming that the version of Safari that iPad uses renders gmail and other google apps in the normal full featured browser manner, this is another avenue to make sure that the web browser remains a viable platform on the iPad/iPhone and is not subsumed by dedicated apps.
There are three big advantages that accrue to platform holders from having an app store and the attendant dedicated/integrated sdk. First, a marketplace/sdk/developer support program makes it easier to develop and monetize applications for their platform. This results in more, higher quality applications. Secondly a marketplace allows the platform holder to control what content gets integrated into their platform and to take a cut of every application that get’s run on their platform. In the old days video game console manufacturers did this by locking down the IP to produce cartridges for their consoles. Nintendo forced publishers to manufacture games in Nintendo factories with Nintendo’s approval of the content. In the post physical media era, the app store provides the same functionality, a great way to monetize a platform. Finally a marketplace makes it easy for platform consumers to find content for the platform thus purchasing more.
In pursuit of the first benefit, more and better development, Intel has done something quite innovative with their atom application marketplace. They have created a second developer marketplace that lets developers post modules that can be incorporated into other developer’s applications for a share of the final product’s revenue. This has the potential to greatly improve the quality and quantity of applications. Independent developers will be able to effortlessly license any components that they aren’t able or don’t want to create themselves. If the netbook app store has legs, whoever makes the best menu system will probably make more money than even the most fully featured fart app.
