3,000,000,000 Downloads, App Store Growth Boggles The Mind!

While preparing a proposal for a series of University lectures, over the weekend I looked up some figures for the growth of the Apple App Store. I wanted the numbers to be solid and verifiable; what I came up with was 100,000 Apps leading to 2 billion downloads. This morning, I sent off my proposal to several of my colleagues for review.


This afternoon Apple announced that it is now 3 billion downloads. I’m not hurt by the increase, other than to worry that the industry is changing faster than I can update my presentation.

Last time I talked to my former IBM colleague, Jim Maguire, he was still travelling the world teaching a course on IBM OS/360 Job Control Language that he had first prepared in the 1960s. His comment: “the best thing is it never changes.”

The essence of Apple’s press release is here:

CUPERTINO, California—January 5, 2010—Apple® today announced that more than three billion apps have been downloaded from its revolutionary App Store by iPhone® and iPod touch® users worldwide.

“Three billion applications downloaded in less than 18 months—this is like nothing we’ve ever seen before,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “The revolutionary App Store offers iPhone and iPod touch users an experience unlike anything else available on other mobile devices, and we see no signs of the competition catching up anytime soon.”

iPhone and iPod touch customers in 77 countries worldwide can choose from an incredible range of apps in 20 categories, including games, business, news, sports, health, reference and travel.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

Note:  The first version of this post left out three zeros, claiming downloads in millions, rather than billions.  It is always dangerous to be both the writer and the editor.