Wedel Software

Apple bestätigt Aus für Radio Apps

iPhoneJetzt ist es offiziell: Apple lässt  ab sofort keine neuen Apps für einzelne Radiosender mehr zu, das bestätigte Mikko Linnamäki, Geschäftsführer der Radio-App-Entwicklerfirma spodtronic gegenüber RADIOSZENE heute Morgen. Linnamäki hatte nach vielen besorgten Anrufen Rücksprache mit Apple gehalten und die Bestätigung der neue Apple-Strategie gegen Radio-Apps  bekommen. Apps, die viele Radiostreams von verschiedenen Radiosendern in einer App anbieten (z.B. radio.de) seien von der neuen Regelung nicht betroffen. Außerdem dürfen die bestehende Apps von Radiosendern weiterhin im Appstore angeboten werden.

In einem E-Mail-Verkehr mit  „Radio Mag Online“ stellte Steve Jobs die Radio Apps auf eine Stufe mit  „Furz-Apps“ und bezeichnete sie als Spam, die den Appstore nur zumüllen. Wortwörtlich schrieb Jobs: „single station app are the same as a FART app and represent spam in the iTunes store“ und Apple „will no longer approve any more radio station apps unless there are hundreds of stations on the same app.“

Es besteht immerhin noch die Hoffnung, dass Radio Apps eventuell auf einen eigenen Developer Account der Radios publiziert werden können, wie Mikko Linnamäki aus England erfahren hat (vgl. Apple vs the Radio Industry? Not Quite).

Update: Apple nimmt Aus für Radio-Apps teilweise zurück

Um die Bedeutung von Radio (-Apps) auf dem iPhone für die Radiobranche zu verdeutlichen, veröffentlicht RADIOSZENE jetzt das Statement von Linnamäki im Original:

Thoughts on Radio Apps on iPhone

linnamaeki_portrait250
Mikko Linnamäki, CEO of spodtronic.com / Liquid Air Lab GmbH

Von Mikko Linnamäki, CEO of spodtronic.com / Liquid Air Lab GmbH

In this letter I am answering the emails and calls from radio station managers which are concerned about this article from a US-based developer telling that Apple has started to reject radio apps, not apparently seeing the value of them and even worse, naming them as „spam“ and comparing them with the „FART Apps“.

We do not see radio apps that way. We love Radio.

Radio is the #2 most used media in the world, and each of the radio apps are branded to attract the audience of the individual station and enjoy a huge loyalty by the users.

Our 10 million radio app users just love their local radio station, and want to listen to their favorite radio on their mobile on the go on with whatever device they have. And the radio stations are happy to reach their audience on the go.

41% of the German iTunes App Store top 100 app charts i music category are radio apps, 24% in UK.

Our hundreds of radio station customers are very successful. 18 of our radio apps have reached the #1 rank in iTunes App Store. Several of our customers‘ radio apps have over 500.000 downloads on iPhone. In Germany, 41% of iTunes App Store Top 100 music app charts are apps from individual radio stations. In UK 24% are radio apps. The same trend is happening all over the world.

See the attached images: How would the App Store Top 100 music app charts of today look like without all the radio apps?

itunescharts_GER_24-10-2010
So würde der Appstore ohne Radio-Apps aussehen

iTunes App Store Music App Charts in UK (24%)

Choice for the users, multiple platforms for the radio stations

The iPhone, which we all love, is no doubt one of the best devices in the world and it has certainly changed everything how we use mobile phones today. From our 1,1 million downloads that the users make every month, 40% are from iPhone. So if they were „Spam“ like named in that article, over 400.000 users voluntarily download „Spam“ on their iPhone. Does not make sense.

And: over 600.000 times per day, these users open their favorite radio app on their iPhone and listen to it. EVERY DAY.

BUT 60% of the radio apps that are downloaded are users with other phones, which are NOT regulated in the manner that influences and censors which content will be included. 44%, so 484.000 of the monthly downloads use NOKIA devices to listen to radio. Over 10% of our users use Android OS, which is growing fast.

We understand and agree, that Apple needs to be selective to keep the crap out of the store.

Apple seems to be getting too many apps in their store, and it certainly is not easy to filter what is relevant and what is not. I think that what happened with the radios according to this article is a mistake, they have not seen that behind each radio app is a huge audience, and that they really profit from radio apps.

It is fully understandable that they have to try to keep the App Store clean. Think about them soon having 500K and in 2 years a million apps in the store, everyone wanting an update once a month, and the updates go thru a full review cycle. Thats a lot of work.

What radio stations can do now, is to make their own iPhone developer account and publish their apps on their own account. Whoever is developing your apps should be able to handle the apps in your account. This way Apple gets the developer fee of $99 from the radio station / year, which will hopefully help Apple to cover the cost of the review staff a bit. We already administrate lots of radioapps on the developer accounts of our radio customers and continue to do so in the future for our hundreds of radio customers. If you need help, let us know.

HTML5 Apps are a great solution if your station got rejected and you are stuck.

For those radio stations that have been rejected and stuck on other developers‘ accounts and need help, we will release a new HTML5 radio app in 2 weeks thru our www.myappstudio.com platform, which is specialized in HTML5 apps.

HTML5 is the second official iPhone development platform, greatly supported and endorsed by Apple. The apps can be distributed virally over facebook, twitter, web and without the App Store reviews and still can be installed onto iPhone home screen like a regular app. HTML5 is a standard that will be supported by all smartphones soon.

Some thoughts about the future, regulating the internet

We will see what will happen with the whole app industry. The whole Internet, every SME is going to apps now, lets see how the app stores (not just Apple) cope with the flood that has started. There might be a fundamental flaw in the regulated systems, there is no power in the world that can regulate the Internet, it is way too large.

In the hope that Apple rethinks their strategy towards radio and continues providing their millions of iPhone users the best music and entertainment in form of Radio Apps.

Weitere Links:
Steve Jobs: Radiosender-Apps sind wie Furz-Apps

XPLR: MEDIA Radio-Report