The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
blog.wilshipley.com
The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
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Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#2The consensus among all the devs I've talked to is that this feature will magically appear the next time Apple does a significant update to one of it's bigger ticket apps... Final Cut, Aperture, Logic, etc.
I can't see any way they can get around this problem without adding paid updates.
Until then 3rd party developers are high and dry.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#3The consensus among all the devs I've talked to is that this feature will magically appear the next time Apple does a significant update to one of it's bigger ticket apps... Final Cut, Aperture, Logic, etc. I can't see any way they can get around this problem without adding paid updates. Until then 3rd party developers are high and dry.
Shucks. They will just have to sell another version of the App (Angry Birds, Angry Birds Seasons, Angry Birds Rio) for full price.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#4It's not a 1-to-1 replacement or panacea, but in app purchases can mitigate the problem—i.e. free update with new features disabled until purchased.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#5The consensus among all the devs I've talked to is that this feature will magically appear the next time Apple does a significant update to one of it's bigger ticket apps... Final Cut, Aperture, Logic, etc. I can't see any way they can get around this problem without adding paid updates. Until then 3rd party developers are high and dry.
Nothing in Apple's recent history suggests this is true. Think of the recent kerfuffle over Final Cut; they had no intention of continuing to sell the older version even though the new one was feature incomplete.
It is highly likely that, when it appears, Aperture4 will similarly just replace Aperture3 at approximately the same price point. You can choose to buy the new one or not, but there's no discounted upgrade path.
Based on Shipley's numbers, it would seem that developers wanting to make money long-term on the Mac App Store would be wise to get on the same "lower initial price, but all major upgrades are full price" app model as soon as they can.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#6As a developer with Apps in the MAS, I can see where this makes sense from the developer's perspective. But I think it is a mater of laziness on the dev's part.
Let me explain:
From a users perspective, this would suck. It is an antiquated system. "I have to pay for an upgrade just so it works on the new OS?" Think of how many times you've had to do this in the past, and how you felt.
Apple will act in the best interest of Joe User, not Joe Developer.
Instead of paid upgrades, dev's should be providing In-App purchases for new features. Maintenance of the App should be provided for free. Win-win for all.
Now stop bitching about what the MAS should have, and start using the solution Apple has given you! :)
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#7The consensus among all the devs I've talked to is that this feature will magically appear the next time Apple does a significant update to one of it's bigger ticket apps... Final Cut, Aperture, Logic, etc. I can't see any way they can get around this problem without adding paid updates. Until then 3rd party developers are high and dry.
Which honestly underscores one of my biggest complaints when working inside Apples ecosystem. I always get the feeling that they're building solutions for themselves first, and developers second, they don't take an agnostic approach to creating a platform. A good example of this is when you look at their UIKit and Appkit frameworks, all of the components were designed to the specific behavior that Apples engineers wanted at that time, with no thought on how to easily extend them. Compare this against other frameworks that were intentionally built to be easily skinnable and customizable.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#8I feel like the solution isn't paid upgrades but instead monthly/yearly subscription for access in the Mac App Store. The 'appification' of the web is eliminating the idea of major release "versions" of software...it's just an app in consumers' minds and it will always be the same product (with gradual improvement of course). As a result, just charge users for ongoing access to your app and keep them paying by providing regular updates.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#9Perhaps the incentive is the wrong one. If the goal is to get users to upgrade, offer a launch sale that entices existing and new users to upgrade.
I don't think it's so terrible that there is multiple versions out there. Reduce the price of the older version and setup the page to let people know there's a new one out there before buying.
Re: The Mac App Store Needs Paid Upgrades
#10It's not a 1-to-1 replacement or panacea, but in app purchases can mitigate the problem—i.e. free update with new features disabled until purchased.
I was thinking the same thing, but I don't think that's sustainable, nor is it a good user experience. If you have X choices of IAP features available, are you going to test the 2^(X+1) configurations out there?
Probably the best you could do with IAP is offer current version as IAP, and roll your n-1 features back into the main app as a free update on a periodic basis (i.e., want the latest and greatest, buy it now, or wait X months/years and get it for free).
Nickle and diming your customers for features also leaves a bad taste in the mouth.
As a customer, I appreciate Apple's model since I know all updates are free and any major version changes usually warrant a new app entry (I find it annoying, but understandable, that the previous version is sometimes retired from the App store), which makes the demarcation clear of what I need to pay for vs. what I don't.