App Stores Plug A Critical Gap In Existing Mobile Internet Strategies

Mobile application stores are the missing link in the emerging mobile Internet ecosystem. Without stores, few consumers will discover, download, or buy mobile applications or widgets. This is ironic: Mobile applications aspire to improve the mobile Internet experience and so increase adoption of new data services, but without a good application store, they fail on basic convenience and customer experience. The Apple App Store demonstrates that a mix of innovation and excellent execution will transform mobile apps into a mainstream success. The raft of new mobile app stores from mobile operators, handset makers, technology suppliers, and others must focus on implementation and cooperation if they are to succeed. In particular, app stores need wide distribution to encourage the wide catalog that makes their offering attractive to consumers. Without it, developers will have a smaller addressable market and make fewer sales — and so be less inclined to support that store or develop for that handset. Stores that attempt to succeed on their own risk failing to achieve that critical mass of distribution.