app store prices and the race to the bottom

[ModuLR]

I've been trying to come to terms with this recently myself. I've spent the better part of the last year coding a modular sampler + tape style multitrack for the iPad. I'm having a very hard time coming up with a pricing structure. I'm using Juce as the framework for the audio engine (everything else being good ol' Objective C). It will cost me roughly $650 to license Juce (which is an awesome framework BTW), and it has already cost me $200 to maintain developer status with Apple. So that's $850 just to put it on the market place. The double whammy is the fact that this is an iPad only app... so the audience is even smaller. I've somewhat given up on the idea that I will realistically get my investment back, and am now considering giving the app away for free. Seems like you have to be somewhat of a heavy weight in order to actually "make" money. Then again, maybe I should charge what I honestly feel it's worth and just not worry too much about whether anyone uses it. I guess there is a balance that must be struck, but it's difficult.

[Dewaine]

If it is a truly good and innovative multitrac,then you can ask a good price, and get it. If it is just another one among many that are already there, then don't expect much. It's just business, nothing different than anything else. If it's really good, and a product people want, your business will prosper. If your product is average or bad, or something there is no need or demand for, your business will fail.

That's just the real world.

[kuniklo]

OP, you did notice it says this is a temporary sale price?

Yeah. I'm just using them as an extreme example of a general trend.

[~Pd~]

ModuLR, why not have a free lite version and a paid version with more tracks, extra effects etc.?

(I'm available for beta testing if you want to use Testflight or whatevs... )

[kuniklo]

It's just business, nothing different than anything else. If it's really good, and a product people want, your business will prosper. If your product is average or bad, or something there is no need or demand for, your business will fail.

If this is, in fact, just the market finding the correct price for these products, why are they at least an order of magnitude cheaper than functionally equivalent VSTs? Does the app store really make buying *that* much easier?

Outside the app store good music tools cost a lot more than games or cheesy utilities. Does it really make sense that a professionally designed music app with serious DSP work is the same price as fart apps, ringtone bundles and mosquito repellent scams?

[JoeCat]

Low prices also tend to favor larger developers - they already have a channel with eyes (and ears). In a niche market like this, there's only so much volume. On the upside, the availability of low-priced apps may spur more musicians/producers to adapt new platforms (like iOS) and raise the overall volume of potential customers.

At App Store prices, I don't think a 50% or even 100% difference in price between competing products will be a big deal to a lot of people if they like a product since prices are so low, but IMHO you'd be hard pressed now to get someone to pay close to the prices they pay on "full-size" platforms even for similar quality products, so the bar has in fact been set quite low.

What I think you're going to see is a reduction in quality for the mass-market with an increase for the niche. It's like this with everything. Happening in gaming - who could have predicted Angry BIrds and Farmville after the bar was raised for years with GTA, Bioshsock, etc.? Audio went from super high-quality in the 80s to the crap-sound of mp3 players. We're doomed when every one's making "Friday" on their phones