On January 7, 2011, Apple launched its Mac App Store with about 1,000 apps. Since then, the store has swelled to pass 4,000 apps, even as developers continue to express reservations about the model.
For developer TechSmith, the Mac App Store has been a success so far. Offering its video editing software through the app store has increased sales by 22 percent in a little over a month. But company VP Jody Burgess says the new channel also has some challenges. “The thing that’s really different is we don’t have direct access to the customers,” said Burgess. “It’s kind of difficult for us to sell software and then not have access to that person. We feel a little bit disconnected.”
