Apple Inc’s newest operating system for iPhones and iPads introduces changes for third-party software, leaning towards app developers and adding new so-called augmented reality apps.
The system, called iOS 11, is being released today before its two newest phone handsets, the iPhone 8 and iPhone X, which the company will beginning shipping to customers later this week.
The store has been redesigned to give app developers more space for images and text so that they are more explanatory. Developers have long grumbled that their software is hard to find in Apple’s store unless users type in the precise name of the app or follow a link to it. An analyst is reported to have said that previously one had so many apps that if you didn’t know exactly what you were looking for, it was really hard to find anything,” said , an analyst with Creative Strategies.
The App Store is the backbone of Apple’s services segment and this is where the most significant changes are. This segment brought in $21.5 billion in revenue in the past nine months, 19 percent more than the previous.
The new store also gives prominent display to games. Games are expected to make up 75 percent of all revenue for Apple’s App Store, according to App Annie, which collects and analyzes market data on mobile apps.
Most of that revenue comes in the form of so-called in-app purchases, where gamers make purchases of tokens, gems and other digital items to unlock new parts of the game.
