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I consider myself an indie developer, and I share none of the author's pessimism. On the contrary -- I think that the circumstances have never been better for i

I consider myself an indie developer, and I share none of the author's pessimism. On the contrary -- I think that the circumstances have never been better for indie developers. First of all, customers have gotten used to buying software from individuals. On the app store, my app is sold alongside apps from major corporations. Secondly, who cares if the app store is dominated by large companies? As a solo developer I don't need millions of dollars in revenue. I just need to find a niche that's worth 100.000€ a year, and there are plenty of those niches! And the nice thing is that these niches are not interesting for big companies, because the market is too small. If you look for successful indies, you will find them. You won't often read about us in the media, since most of us make mostly boring stuff for small audiences, but we exist!

jasode 11y ago
>On the app store, my app is sold alongside apps from major corporations. ... I just need to find a niche that's worth 100.000€ a year, Fyi, the author seemed to be talking about the iOS App Store (phones/tablets) and not the Mac App Store (desktop software.) In any case, are you talking about your PostgreSQL apps at eggerapps.at earning €100k? If so, that's awesome. To clarify, are you getting most/all of that €100k from the Mac App Store as opposed to sales outside that channel? 30% is a lot of commission to give to Apple and I'm surprised that a typical customer would discover that type of db app in the Mac App store as opposed to a google search or forum recommendation linking to your website. From there, they could download it directly without that Apple middleman.
- jakobegger 11y ago
  You're right, my personal experience is limited to the Mac App Store. But I do know indie developers who make money with iPhone apps, and I think the general situation for indies is similar: you can find plenty of niches that are big enough to support a single developer or a small team. And yes, I was talking about the apps on eggerapps.at, mostly Postico. I do sell my apps directly as well, and only around 20% of my sales are on the Mac App Store. Postico has a lower price on my website, but apparently there are some people who really prefer the Mac App Store.

jasode 11y ago

>On the app store, my app is sold alongside apps from major corporations. ... I just need to find a niche that's worth 100.000€ a year, Fyi, the author seemed to be talking about the iOS App Store (phones/tablets) and not the Mac App Store (desktop software.) In any case, are you talking about your PostgreSQL apps at eggerapps.at earning €100k? If so, that's awesome. To clarify, are you getting most/all of that €100k from the Mac App Store as opposed to sales outside that channel? 30% is a lot of commission to give to Apple and I'm surprised that a typical customer would discover that type of db app in the Mac App store as opposed to a google search or forum recommendation linking to your website. From there, they could download it directly without that Apple middleman.

jakobegger 11y ago
You're right, my personal experience is limited to the Mac App Store. But I do know indie developers who make money with iPhone apps, and I think the general situation for indies is similar: you can find plenty of niches that are big enough to support a single developer or a small team. And yes, I was talking about the apps on eggerapps.at, mostly Postico. I do sell my apps directly as well, and only around 20% of my sales are on the Mac App Store. Postico has a lower price on my website, but apparently there are some people who really prefer the Mac App Store.