The real reason App Store e-book submissions are up
Am I the first to realise why e-book submissions are up in the Apple App Store? Even above video games, historically the highest catagory in app submissions?
If I were a developer, I'd be anticipating the Apple Tablet/Slate launch. We can only go on the assumption, but it will likely have an App Store, probably the same app store with so much content available on it Almost 100,000 apps now, isn't it? **So why the sudden e-book frenzy?**
Clearly, to compete hard in the page sized handheld market against the obvious likes of Kindle (who also have an iPhone app), Apple will at least in part design the tablet with print reading in mind. To say the news print medium is losing business fast is to say Rupert Murdoch is an old rich bastard.
Devs want a foot in the door to compete in the **tablet honeymoon**, a period which could last up to four months as the iPhone had, but more likely two, as developers are better prepared for a cocoa touch platform already. The iPhone honeymoon was the 3-4 month period after the App Store launch in which the pirate bedroom developers had an equal footing with the big league programmers. In fact they were better prepared, many of whom coded for the jailbreak application stores - I remember trying out this great music game called Tap Tap Revenge. You seen how well it's doing now? It's one of the biggest games on the official App Store now. **Bedroom developers were making hundreds of thousands of pounds in weeks.** The big companies saw this and lept in, and the entreprenurship honeymoon ended. It's still possible to create your own apps and succeed developing for iPhone, but you'll need a great, original idea, and frankly, access to great design. But good luck making a splash in that 100k pool. Which brings us back to why there are so many e-book submissions: There is the new window for the everyman to jump in before someone else becomes established, and/or the big names take over. **Devs are going on the assumption the same App Store will run on the tablet**, and be ready for the real sale launch date, whenever it may be in 2010. There may be a twist in the tale yet, and a prepared, competitive market means there may never be the same pirate opportunity for stratospheric handheld development as the original App Store launch, but the winners and losers in this new battle will only be decided by the buying public. I predict the most convenient (which usually means affordable, simple to use, or most content) will win. Let's remember this could be your opportunity to make a splash in new interfaces. Decent touch screen sequencer? Unique MIDI controller? iMac TV remote? **This is your chance.** What do you think about the e-book surge? Will there be another app rennaisance soon? I will continue the discussion in the comments.