Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Apple answers call for iPhone applications

Apple wowed the cell phone industry a year ago with the first version of the iPhone. And now its new software development kit and soon-to-be-launched application store featuring third-party applications could change the game yet again.

The big news Monday at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco was of course CEO Steve Jobs' announcement of a 3G version of the iPhone. But the company also made several software announcements that could set a new standard for getting new and innovative applications to market quickly.

There's no question that Apple's launch of the iPhone last year changed the handset market. The touchscreen device loaded with a full Web browser that allows people to shrink and enlarge Web pages set a new standard for what people can expect when surfing the Net on their phones.

But with the SDK and the soon-to-be-launched application store, Apple has shown the true power and vision of the iPhone, which goes well beyond simple Web browsing on the go. The company has created a powerful platform for developing new applications, plus a set of simple tools that can be used to quickly and easily bring new mobile applications to market. And it's created an App Store, linked with its popular iTunes music and video store, where these applications can be easily searched for and downloaded.

"A device is nothing without applications," said Ken Dulaney, an analyst with Gartner. "The one lesson you can take away from Microsoft is that once you ... Read more

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