Apple Inc.’s bet on cellphone software appears to be paying off. In the month since Apple opened an online software clearinghouse called the App Store, users have downloaded more than 60 million programs for the iPhone, Chief Executive Steve Jobs said in an interview at Apple’s headquarters. While most of those applications were free, Apple sold an average of $1 million a day in applications for a total of about $30 million in sales over the month, Mr. Jobs said.
If sales stay at the current pace, Apple stands to reap at least $360 million a year in new revenue from the App Store, Mr. Jobs said. “This thing’s going to crest a half a billion, soon,” he added. “Who knows, maybe it will be a $1 billion marketplace at some point in time…I’ve never seen anything like this in my career for software.”
Apple has hit a few speed bumps along the way, in part because it has set itself up as a powerful intermediary for the distribution of software to iPhones. For instance, it has frustrated some software developers by removing their programs from its App Store without explanation. Some iPhone users also have complained of technical problems with various iPhone applications, which software makers have attempted to correct with frequent patches.
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