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10 July 2008Primary source · 2 sourcesWell documented

The App Store opens the mobile app economy

Five hundred apps at launch grow into a market developers have earned billions from

On the timeline · around 10 July 2008 · Social, Mobile, and the CloudThe Web and the Dot-Com BoomSocial, Mobile, and the CloudThe App Store opens the mobile app economy20042006200820102012

Quick facts

Launched
10 July 2008
Apps at launch
500
Developer fee
$99 per year (iPhone Developer Program, announced March 2008)
Developer earnings by 2018
Over $100 billion

What happened

The original iPhone launched in June 2007 with only the fifteen applications Apple had built into it and no way for outside developers to add more. Apple opened the App Store on 10 July 2008 with 500 apps available at launch, built by third-party developers who had paid a $99 annual fee to join the iPhone Developer Program announced that March. Users downloaded roughly 10 million apps in the store's first weekend alone.

Why it matters

The App Store turned the iPhone from a fixed set of Apple-built features into an open platform where any developer could reach millions of users directly, and by its tenth anniversary in 2018, Apple reported that developers had collectively earned more than $100 billion through the store, establishing app sales and in-app purchases as a lasting business model rather than a novelty.

How we know

Apple's own tenth-anniversary newsroom release documents the 10 July 2008 launch date, the 500-app starting count, and the cumulative developer earnings figure directly.

Sources

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