As Apple prepares to launch the Mac App Store next month, a rival effort is underway by Cydia (http://cydia.saurik.com) — a popular app store alternative destination for the estimated 10% of owners of jailbroken iPhones — is planning a competitor, reports “PC World” (http://www.pcworld.com/article/213399/apple_nemesis_to_offer_mac_app_store_alternative.html?).
At a developers conference this weekend, Jay Freeman, the man behind Cydia, The Mac App Store is designed to make it easy for users to find, download and pay for apps, without having to move around various web sites to download their software.
“Apple will put every app submitted in the Mac App Store through its infamous approval process. Also, there won’t be any trials, in-app purchases or product keys,” says “PC World.” “However, due to these limitations in the upcoming Mac App Store, Freeman believes that his Cydia alternative for Macs will be a much more attractive platform for developers.”
Apple recently confirmed that demos, trial versions and beta software is off limits for the Mac App Store. The company says: “Your website is the best place to provide demos, trial versions, or betas of your software for customers to explore. The apps you submit to be reviewed for the Mac App Store should be fully functional, retail versions of your apps.”
Craig Federighi, vice president of engineering for OS X, demoed Lion at the Back to the Mac event in October. The Mac App Store brings the Apple App Store experience to Mac OS X, making discovering, installing and updating Mac apps easier than ever, he said. Like on the iPad, you purchase apps using your iTunes account and they download and install in just one step.
The Mac App Store will be available for Mac OS X 10.6 (“Snow Leopard”) in early 2011. And it will be built into next year’s Mac OS X Lion.
The take of the Sellers Research Firm (that’s me): the Cydia store could be a good thing. Competition is good, and Apple will doubtless rule the Mac App Store with an iron hand as it does the Apple App Store for iOS apps.
— Dennis Sellers
