Fixing the App Store ⇥

Wil Shipley on the need for paid upgrades in the Mac App Store:

Right now developers selling through the Mac App Store face a lose/lose choice: either provide all major upgrades to existing customers for free (thus losing a quarter of our revenue), or create a “new” product for each major version (creating customer confusion) and charge existing customers full price again (creating customer anger).

I think this is necessary on the iOS app store, too, hence the title. There are many little things to fix in both App Stores: trial/demo versions, easier transition from elsewhere-purchased applications to Mac App Store copies, and easier discovery of the best apps in the each store. Paid upgrades are part of what needs fixing, especially from a developer’s perspective.