Oct 18, 2010
appbackr, the world’s first wholesale marketplace for iPhone and iPad apps, today launched in open beta, making its wholesale catalog of apps available to buyers. To encourage developers to sign up during appbackr’s first month, the company is also launching the appbackr Challenge – offering hundreds of dollars in incentives to early users.
“We’re so pleased to launch our platform in open beta today,” said appbackr CEO Trevor Cornwell. “We had 1,500 people sign up as buyers and sellers in the months leading up to the launch, and we’re eager to show this group exactly how appbackr works and why it’s a critical part of the iPhone and iPad developer ecosystem.”
appbackr follows the traditional wholesale model, updated for Apple developers. Using the platform, developers agree to sell a certain number of units to wholesale buyers at a discount. Wholesale buyers purchase those units in bulk and profit when the app sells through iTunes. Developers get the cash to support their app, and a “backr” with a vested interest in promoting their iPhone or iPad app. Wholesalers get involved in the promotion of emerging apps, and earn a 27 to 54 percent return once the app sells at the retail level.
“appbackr will change the way small- and mid-sized developers think about funding and distributing their projects,” said iPhone developer Josh Michaels, founder of Jetson Creative. “appbackr is a necessary piece of the new app economy – it’s surprising it has taken this long for it to emerge.”
appbackr is running the appbackr Challenge between now and Nov. 15, to encourage developers to sign up for the platform and tell their friends about it. Once developers enter the Challenge, there are further incentives for developers to promote their app, and introduce the platform to wholesale buyers.
“Selling wholesale apps through appbackr helps us accelerate features, resulting in more units sold and greater profitability,” said iPhone developer Steven Echtman, and founder of HearPlanet. “appbackr is a great concept, and it really feels like a win-win for developers and buyers.”
Click here to follow @appbackr on Twitter.
Click here to become a fan of appbackr on Facebook.
About appbackr
appbackr is the first wholesale digital marketplace for iPhone and iPad applications. Developers pre-sell copies of their app at wholesale prices, to buyers who earn a profit once the app sells through iTunes. appbackr is the recipient of the 2010 PayPal X Developer Challenge, the Silicon Valley Association of Startup Engineers Seed Fund Award and was named a 2010 AlwaysOn Global 250 company. The company is headquartered in Palo Alto, Calif., and is backed by Cambridge West Ventures and the Hall Financial Group.
Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6470614&lang=en
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
Learn More