1 Billion Apps - So Now What for iTunes' App Store?

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It's a staggering number: 1,000,000,000.

The iPhone App store launched in July of 2008 and grew faster than most anticipated - both inventory and adoption. The App Store's 25,000 apps will reach one-billion downloads sometime in the next 48 hours. That's an average of 40,000 downloads per app.

So what's next for Apple's App Store? The iPhone 3.0 OS that will launch this summer will create a new wave of applications and inspire a new series of innovations. But equally important, the App Store needs to change. It needs a total overhaul.

The App Store is overwhelmed by the flood of content - which is sorted in only three ways: - recency - popularity (which is somewhat of a black box) - featured content

The result is that users are left downloading already popular applications or sifting through new content (25 at a time). It is akin to buying music from either the Billboard Top 25 or being placed in front of a rack of everything else - sorted only by release date. Shouldn't my recent purchases play a role? Better yet, my reviews and defined preferences? How about my social graph and their selections?

Another great example is the difference between shopping on Amazon and on eBay / Craigslist. They both have seemingly unlimited inventory - but Amazon's shopping experience is efficient because it is based on recommendations and user history / data. Meanwhile, you have to sift through listings on eBay and Craigslist to find the right product, seller and price.

The other constraint is that the App Store is most conveniently accessed on the iPhone / iPod Touch - which makes search-based navigation even more cumbersome.

I think there are two clear solutions:

1. Integration into the Social Graph

Ideally, iTunes would integrate Facebook Connect. I want to know what apps my friends have downloaded and how they were rated (and it's in the developers' best interest to share that information). Furthermore, most applications are more engaging if connected to the social graph (whether socially or directly through Facebook Connect).

2. Premium App Store

I believe editorial can and should play a role. Whether it's featured content or paid placements (a revenue opportunity for iTunes) - there is an opportunity to expand on what they already do for music (Editor's Picks, lists, etc). A pay-for-placement (or performance) marketplace could arise as well.

LOLapps: Reaches 22% of Facebook Users

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Never heard of LOLapps? Don't worry - most of their 44,000,000 active monthly users probably haven't either.

LOLapps enables users to easily create custom Facebook Apps using their tools. The basic application templates are currently quizzes and gifts (with more robust gaming templates on the way). So while you have likely not heard of LOLapps (as you have heard of Slide or RockYou) - you have likely encountered a gift or taken a quiz that was built using LOLapps. In fact, they now reach 22% of Facebook users (44m monthly).

Yesterday I wrote about Facebook's Toop Developers by monthly reach. LOLapps doesn't appear in those reports because they do not show up as the developer of each application. Their 44,000,000 monthly uniques though would put them on par with Zynga at the #1 spot. As an example, take a look of one of their top Apps: "What Sex in the City Character are You?"

Nearly 200,000 users - which is a big number. But to reach 44m, you begin to realize how many long-tail quizzes and gifts have been created!

Read more about LOLapps on: - LOLapps.com - ReadWriteWeb - InsideFacebook

LivingSocial Now 3rd Largest Facebook Developer (Behind Zynga & RockYou)

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The top four developers on Facebook have three very recognizable names... and one you probably are familiar with by product - but not by name: LivingSocial (whom I have covered in recent weeks):

#1. Zynga: 40,000,000+ monthly active Facebook users #2. RockYou: 40,000,000 monthly active Facebook users #3. LivingSocial: ~27,500,000 monthly active Facebook users #4. Slide: ~25,000,000 monthly active Facebook users The trends are as remarkable as the numbers (consider that 20,000,000 actives represents 10% of all Facebook!).

Zynga is growing steadily; RockYou has stabilized and Slide has dipped. Meanwhile, the LivingSocial growth rates are phenomenal. The below chart is over one month's time:

It will be interesting to see if LivingSocial supplants Zynga at the #1 spot and where / when the growth flattens.

The full charts are shown on InsideFacebook.com. I encourage you to take a look because it puts the velocity of InsideSocial's growth in perspective.

13 iPhone Apps I Want Developed (Google, ESPN, FriendFeed)

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1. GMail The improved Gmail iPhone site is just that: improved. But a true GMail iPhone App would allow fuller cusotmizations, run faster, better integrate calendars and contacts... and soon utilize the new push notification systems of iPhone 3.0.

2. Google Reader / RSS I use my iPhone as much for email as I do for content consumption. A Google Reader App would instantly be my starting point for iPhone-based web browsing. It would also increase my activity on Reader - particularly the social aspects (sharing, commenting, etc).

3. AdWords / AdSense Ever been without a computer and needed data associated with AdWords or AdSense? Happens to me all the time... Better yet, the ability to lightly manage campaigns (particularly with AdWords).

4. Facebook Connect + iTunes & App Store This is a pipe dream, but I would love an Apple built app that, via Facebook Connect, created personalized histories and storefronts for iTunes and the App Store. I find both stores increasingly unusable due to the overwhelming inventory... Facebook Connect is the solution.

5. ESPN Fantasy Is there a better use case for an iPhone App? Fantasy sports require on-demand knowledge and management. Fantasy sports players would never put their iPhone down again. 6. FriendFeed Perhaps this would be solved for me by a Google Reader App... but FriendFeed would provide more social functionality and would certainly make me a more loyal, active user.

7. Techmeme I visit Techmeme daily. It is particularly difficult to navigate on the iPhone. A simple iPhone App would make the on-Techmeme / off-Techmeme navigation more efficient. It would also allow for history and search functionality.

8. Starbucks I drink a lot of coffee and use a lot of Starbucks' free wifi. Some sort of location finding application that provided coupons and incentives would be very appetizing.

9. MLB.TV MLB.tv is my favorite product of 2009: amazing HD streaming quality with every conceivable feature request (fantasy tracking, four-game split screens, DVR controls, etc). I would pay an additional $10-$20 to get the streaming on my iPhone (when 3.0 arrives).

10. Google Analytics Makes total sense. All I need is basic statistics.

11. Aardvark I love Aardvark... but my most frequent use-case is when I am away from my computer. With an iPhone App, I would use Aardvark far more routinely and it would be my Q&A service of choice (perhaps replacing Yelp and others on mobile).

12. Wordpress.org To the best of my knowledge, there is not an equivalent of the great Wordpress.com iPhone App for blogs running Wordpress.org... if there is, please let me know. If there isn't, please build it.

13. USPS Tracking The FedEx App is terrific and solves a big need - and with 3.0 it will be even better. I would love the same for USPS (but certainly do not expect this to be built!).

Rich Media Advertising Comes to iPhone

We have seen the iPhone provided rich advertising experiences on branded sites like Yahoo and ESPN... but this is unique:

Mobile advertising agency Medialets has created ads utilizing the iPhone's accelerometer and audio capabilities. The below interactive ad is a full take over on the iPhone (shown in SGN's iBowl game). When a user shakes the iPhone, the Dockers model break dances accordingly.

Here's the simplest way to think of campaigns like this: A. The consumer enjoys the ad and interacts with it... often repeatedly B. The advertiser wins because the consumer is proactive and motivated to share C. The publisher wins because A+B = far greater CPMs (supposedly 10x here) If advertisers can effectively and meaningfully engage consumers (the A in this equation), B and C fall into place. That is why I firmly believe that the most valuable ads will also be the most engaging and/or relevant... and that targeting and interaction are critical:

Other formats and ad actions from Medialets:

Available Ad Formats Chiclet - Clickable content that can be stylized to fit app by app developer Icon - Icon which can be manipulated to fit app display. Clickable Banner - Fixed size clickable content Text - Clickable text Overlays - Translucent popup that supports image, text, video, full button, or combination Interstitial - Full screen ad shown between pages of an app Branded Experiences - Custom built applications to your specifications. You’re only limited by the capabilities of the device. Splash Screen Placement - Full screen ad shown before app home screen Home Screen Placement - Full screen ad on home screen that scales down to a banner, chiclet or logo. Custom Brand Placement - We’ll work with you to create a unique brand placement that caters to your needs and imagination.

Available Ad Actions Click to Call Click to Full Screen Video Click to Overlay Video Click to Video In Ad Video As Ad Video Text Overlay Video Graphic Overlay Video Button Overlay Click to Embedded Web Page (Online) Click to Embedded Web Page (Offline) Click to Online Web Page Click to Offline Microsite Click to GeoLocate Click to Email Click to App Store Click to iTunes Library Content Click to iTunes Store (Audio & Video) Click to Lead Capture (Online) Click to Lead Capture (Offline) Click to Share

The Ultimate Business Card

"It doesn't fit in a Rolodex... Because it doesn't belong in a Rolodex."

The below video is hilarious and reminds me of the American Psycho scene where Christian Bale and his banker friends dissect one another's business cards:

Also a good business card, but not quite as "crowd grabbing" is Steve Martin's:

8 Google Feature Requests: Gtalk, Gmail, Reader & Chrome

Below are eight feature requests that come out of daily frustrations on various Google services. Each is relatively minor and doesn't make me want to switch services... it simply creates minor annoyances. There is a chance that some of these requests are already possible. If so, I would love to hear how to access the features... and if so, it suggests that the features aren't easily accessible and/or well marketed.

1. Google Talk Audio Alerts For years, cell phone users have been able to set specific audio notifications for each contact. In simplest form, I want the ability to mute notification sounds on Gtalk and select users whose chats would promote audio alerts. Better yet, I would like to set specific sounds to different users or groups.

2. Google Talk Contact Ordering Alphabetic or frequency sorting are the only current ways to organize your chat contacts. Why?! 3. Google RSS Sharing I love the action bar below each article in Google Reader (in fact, I wish it were above the article or available on the left panel). My most common use-case is the email option - however, I wish that I could share it with a defined / private user group. Until more controls are available for sharing, I find it too general and thus unappealing.

4. Google Reader to Facebook, Twitter & Wordpress Emailing articles from within Google reader is great... I'd also love the ability to share and comment via Facebook (with Facebook Connect?), Twitter and Wordpress. A no brainer.

5. Google Calendar Notifications (via Gmail) It's great that Google Labs now allows Gmail customizations and enhancements. I've placed my Google Calendar prominently on the upper left corner of my Gmail pages... but I would like better, stronger notifications for upcoming meetings. Unfortunately the mini notification on the bottom right corner rarely catches my attention.

6. Chrome Integration I believe it is coming... but: I use Chrome and I live on Google services (Gmail, Gtalk, Google Reader, Calendar, etc). Chrome is the most logical way to tie the services together, enable greater customization and add more horsepower. For instance, Google Reader could be entirely built into the browser. Gtalk and calendaring could as well.

7. Gallery of Gmail Themes People love Gmail themes. When Google released themes for corporate accounts, our office (unexpectedly) rejoiced and people discussed their favorite themes. Bizarre? Yes.... but people love customizations. I would love to see a gallery of customized themes as, frankly, I am too lazy and inartistic to set up my own theme.

8. iPhone Apps Post coming soon on this front....

Pandora & Loopt Join Sprint's Latest Commercial

Twitter received great placement in Sprint's latest ad campaign: The Now Network (and Twitter gets even better placement on Oprah today!). The second commercial features both Pandora and Loopt. The commercials are hip, interesting and covey the size of Sprint's network (not exactly evident to most consumers). And the best part? They are better than the old Dan Hesse campaign:

Digital Chocolate Talks iPhone Apps, Gaming

Terrific interview over on VentureBeat. Dean Takahashi speaks with Digital Chocolate's Trip Hawkins about their success on iPhone's App platform.

I encourage you to read the full article but have included two highlights:

About the odds of becoming a #1 iPhone Application and reaching 10 million downloads in 100 days:

There are 35,000 apps [competing on the iPhone]. Thousands are free. To get to No. 1, it’s pretty rare. There is a rotation where something stays at No. 1 for a week or two. The odds are very low. If there are maybe 25 products that have hit No. 1, then your odds are one in a thousand. Penguin was No. 1 through Christmas. Tower Blocks was No. 1 in February. Brick Breaker Revolution made it to No. 1 in April. That’s a mathematical freak. We have now released a fifth game, and a couple of more are coming. The first four games, in less than 100 days, hit 10 million downloads.

On deriving revenue and finding the right price point:

All five of our games are in the top 100 for revenue. Four of our games are in the top 100 by unit volume even though the prices for them are $3 each or more. If you weed out the really cheap products at 99 cents or free, then you find there are only three companies that can command a price of $3 or more and to rank high enough in the top 100 units sold.