Developers have made $70 billion on Apple's App Store

Ahead of the company's World Wide Developer Conference, WWDC 2017, set to kick off Monday, June 5, Apple is sharing some news about just how much all the apps made by those developers have been earning — a cool $70 billion since 2008. Even more impressive, that's up 70% in the last year alone.

The majority of that almost certainly comes from the iOS App Store, which launched on iPhone in 2008 and expanded to iPad in 2010. The macOS App Store followed shortly thereafter with the most recent, the tvOS App Store, joining the fold in 2015. (There's also a watchOS App Store but watchOS apps currently come included with iPhone apps.)

Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing:

People everywhere love apps and our customers are downloading them in record numbers. Seventy billion dollars earned by developers is simply mind-blowing. We are amazed at all of the great new apps our developers create and can't wait to see them again next week at our Worldwide Developers Conference.

It's not the brave new frontier it once was, where it felt like anyone with a dream could learn to code, make an app, and ride a gazillion downloads off into the sunset. In truth, it was never that way. The exceptions just made the news cycles.

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Today, App Store is a mature market with some of the biggest names in the business raking in millions of dollars in in-app purchases with games that simply wouldn't be possible on traditional platforms or consoles.

Payouts are at $70 billion but billings are around $100 billion. Here is history of app billings, cumulative. pic.twitter.com/rEKhhZEaxx
— Horace Dediu (@asymco) June 1, 2017

Likewise, apps that can hail you a ride, pay for a meal, get you to a meeting room, check you into a flight, and stream you news and entertainment from around the world on your way.

My App Store heart, though, is still dominated by the indies. Competition has become fierce and figuring out sustainable income has become a challenge, just like many other businesses there days. But I have Tweetbot and Fantastical, 1Password and CARROT, PCalc and Halide, Linea and Procreate, and so many more, that I simply can't get anywhere else. And that's made my life significantly better as well.

And that's on devices, and as part of an economy, that literally didn't exist a decade ago.

Apple's made a bunch of changes over the last year, including fixing review times, removing abandonware, introducing search ads and review responses, expanding subscription services, and more. They've even improved search. Finally.

There are still challenges and frustrations to be sure but, since taking over, I think Phil Schiller and team have also brought a lot of new hope and potential.

And I can't wait for WWDC 2017 and whatever is coming next.

Developer Earnings from the App Store Top $70 Billion

CUPERTINO, Calif — Apple today announced that its global developer community has earned over $70 billion since the App Store launched in 2008. The App Store is home to the most innovative apps in the world and in the past 12 months alone, downloads have grown over 70 percent.

From breakout hits like Pokémon GO and Super Mario Run to other standout launches such as CancerAid, SPACE by THIX, Zones for Training with Exercise Intensity, Vanido, Ace Tennis and Havenly, customers discover and experience new apps and games every day on the App Store.

"People everywhere love apps and our customers are downloading them in record numbers," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. "Seventy billion dollars earned by developers is simply mind-blowing. We are amazed at all of the great new apps our developers create and can't wait to see them again next week at our Worldwide Developers Conference."

Since the release of iOS 10 last fall, iPhone and iPad users have also experienced new engaging and creative ways to connect, such as giving a friend a Starbucks gift card using Apple Pay, collaborating on a fashion design sketch using Prêt à Template, or making someone smile with an endless assortment of stickers.

With the subscription business model now available to developers across all 25 app categories, the App Store's active paid subscriptions are up 58 percent year over year. Customers are enjoying subscriptions across a wide variety of services including longtime favorites such as Netflix and Hulu, as well as newcomers like Tastemade, the modern, mobile-first cooking network, and photo editing apps like Over and Enlight.

App Store developers from around the world create apps for customers in 155 countries that improve lives, rethink industries and shape culture. Gaming and Entertainment are top-grossing categories, and Lifestyle apps, as well as Health and Fitness, have experienced over 70 percent growth in the past year. The Photo and Video category is also among the fastest-growing at nearly 90 percent growth.

Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV. Apple's four software platforms — iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay and iCloud. Apple's more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.