App Cubby developer David Barnard contacted us today to let us know he's a little frustrated with the pricing in the app store. As prices trend toward $0.99, many developers are feeling the crunch. And while he thinks the app store itself is pretty sound, he wants to try a different pricing option.
On the subject app store pricing, and $0.99 apps in particular, David had this to say:
We're not complaining at the existence of $0.99 apps. We're frustrated that artificial market forces are driving down the price of apps, which in turn drives down the perceived value of the products we have invested significant time and money to create. Marketing can help, but it’s throwing good money after bad if the market discourages charging a fair price for an app.
The new method he's going to try is to price all of his apps at $0.99 -- and if you think they are worth more, head on over to his donation page and tip him what you think they are worth.
It's in interesting direction to take. All of the App Cubby apps are fantastic and worth well more than $0.99. But will people pay more? I hope so. Will Apple kick him out of the iTunes App Store for doing this? Doubtful -- really not that much different than e-book sellers or other apps with extra costs or subscriptions after the app sale.
If you are interested in iTunes App Store pricing, the blog over at App Cubby has some great thoughts on the matter. Highly recommended reading. [ AppCubby Blog ]
We wish David luck with this experiment. I hope it goes well. Take a look at the AppCubby apps, they are all very easy to recommend at $0.99. And maybe, if you like them, head on over and donate something extra.
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