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Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

marco.org

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Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#11

Post by r_h_thomas »

modernerd wrote: post #5

Instapaper has little need for a free app because it's so unique; there are few paid alternatives, let alone free ones. If you're building something less extraordinary, offering a free app with an in-app upgrade path makes more sense. The free-to-pro transition seems to work better with a single app using in app purchases (to remove ads and unlock features) than with two separate apps. It's possible to structure the…

What in the world is "extraordinary" about Instapaper? It came at the right time to help people deal with the limitations of a mobile device, but the app itself is trivial. The model is trivial. The web service is, I would wager, trivial.

It is entirely normal, but happened at exactly the right time.

I'm not a big fan of Marcos because I read a sense of desperation in virtually all he has said lately (just look through his recent archives and you'll see someone tilting into the wind). Further isn't it a bit ridiculous for someone to have gotten big on the backs of a free app to then -- after they've established the network effect and have market presence -- proclaim that free apps aren't necessary?

It's a lesson with no meat at all. If this app started at $4.99 and became as popular as it is, then you'd have a story. Otherwise honestly it reads more like an attempt at misdirection for people who might follow.

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#12

Post by unwantedLetters »

I am sad about this since I was an Instapaper Free to Instapaper paid convert. In fact, I would never have used it if I hadn't used the free app.

I know I'm in a minority of users, but I still think the free is useful.

Having initially spent many months using my iPhone and not paying for any apps at all (only downloading free apps), I took my first step into paid apps with a cheap $0.99 app, and realized that for the small price, it made my app (and phone) experience a whole lot better. After that, I was always willing to spend money on apps (even if it was just for experimentation) and Instapaper became one of the first apps I bought.

I don't know if this is an unusual thing, but I've noticed a lot of my friends act in a similar manner. After paying for that first app, they are very willing to pay for more. And you'd be losing some very good customers if you removed the free app.

I suppose I understand Marco's decision even after all this, I'm still unhappy that we might see it go.

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#13

Post by jcampbell1 »

As an alternative viewpoint, his thinking seems incredibly shortsighted. When it comes time to launch "InstaAlbum, share your family photos", he is going to have 1/3 the potential audience to draw customers. 3x the existing customers could make the difference between the top of the charts and the press recognition that goes with it.

Part of his rational is that some tiny percentage of the free customers complain, and write negative reviews. Marco should man up and simply accept he has a good product and is a talented developer. That way he doesn't have to give a damn about the haters. It is sad that the %.1 of the population that is inherently bitchy, is driving his business decisions.

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#14

Post by state_machine »

goforth wrote: post #8

I think Readitlater (and lately Readability) strips down the content much better than Instapaper. Instapaper always has a lot of weird extraneous stuff around the text. The others do not. +1 for them.

I've been using Instapaper (mostly on programming related blog posts [standard WP/Blogger templates] and major magazine articles [Vanity Fair, Economist, etc]) for a while and rarely found this to be the case. It has almost always stripped unneeded markup well, often providing a superior reading experience on the iPhone than iOS Safari's rendering of the original content.

Are there any specific sites/types of pages you've had trouble with?

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#15

Post by TetOn »

goforth wrote: post #8

I think Readitlater (and lately Readability) strips down the content much better than Instapaper. Instapaper always has a lot of weird extraneous stuff around the text. The others do not. +1 for them.

In fairness, it's worth noting that Readability app is Instapaper; it's just been repackaged. http://techcrunch.com/2011/02/05/instapaper-readability/

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#16

Post by mgkimsal »

dpcan wrote: post #10

"Maybe you think I can only do this because Instapaper is already popular. But it built its popularity while charging a lot for an iPhone app from the start." AND there was a free version out. He's neglecting the "critical mass" factor. The free version helped him sell the full version until it reached that "critical mass" that was required for the popularity of the full version to continue to drive sales of itself.…

AND there's a free website that drives people to know about the ipad version in the first place.

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#17

Post by gordonbowman »

xinsight wrote: post #6

Thoughtful approach on app pricing and customer selection. The point that resonated with recent experiences was this one: "How much effort do I really want to devote to satisfying people who are unable or extremely unlikely to pay for anything? (This is also a major reason why I have no plans to enter the Android market.)"

agreed, that point stood out to me too.

also his note about not needing every iOS-device owner. And his footnote illustrates just how huge the iOS market is:

"If “only” 1% of current iOS-device owners bought Instapaper, I’d make about $5 million. I’d love to have 1% of the market"

Re: Why Instapaper Free is taking an extended vacation

#20

Post by jrockway »

How does he know nobody will buy the Android app? I barely use any free apps other than the ones that come with Cyanogen Mod.

Titanium Backup? Paid. ROM Manager? Paid. Treking? Paid. Android IRC? Paid. X-Plane? Paid.

Android users have no problems paying for apps. Non-Android developers are afraid of the unknown.

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