The App Store Launched, Starting the Mobile App Economy (2008)

On July 10, 2008, Apple launched the App Store, the first official app marketplace for the iPhone. Released alongside iPhone OS 2.0, it gave users the ability to install third-party apps with just a few taps, while providing developers with a single platform to distribute their software worldwide.

Around 500 apps were available at launch. They included games, navigation tools, news apps, messaging software, and the first mobile clients from major internet companies. The App Store was championed by Steve Jobs and the Apple team, and the release of the official iPhone SDK enabled thousands of developers to build native apps for the platform.

The App Store was not the first marketplace for mobile applications, but it was the first to achieve widespread success with a complete, integrated ecosystem. It brought together:

1. A single place to discover and install apps
2. A unified account for purchasing software
3. Apple’s app review process, helping ensure quality and security
4. A built-in monetization system for developers

Before the App Store, the original iPhone offered almost no support for third-party native applications. Apple encouraged developers to build web apps instead. The launch of the App Store completely changed that approach, turning the smartphone into a general-purpose software platform.

Just three days after its launch, users had downloaded more than 10 million apps. The numbers demonstrated that demand for mobile software was far greater than expected and marked the beginning of today’s mobile app economy.

Sources

• Apple — The App Store Turns 10
• Apple — iPhone App Store Downloads Top 10 Million in First Weekend
• TechCrunch — iPhone App Store Has Launched
• MacRumors — iPhone App Store: 500 Apps at Launch
• MacRumors — Happy 10th Anniversary, App Store!