Apple bumps into some third party apps to extend iOS 7
Apple's new iOS 7 appears to step on the toes of a variety of third party developers by incorporating their apps' functionality directly into the platform.
Attention App Store developers: Apple isn't afraid to extend new versions of iOS in directions that may overlap your own goals.
After thirty years of carefully avoiding most direct competition with its third party developers' apps, the new iOS 7 appears to ready to bundle useful app functionality directly into the platform whenever it makes sense.
The new Camera offers a lot of feature overlap with Instagram, making it a natural way for iOS users to capture photos (including Instagram-like square pictures), apply filters, and share with various services.
Additionally, Photos expands support for Photo Stream to include both photo and video sharing, including shared, collaborative albums. That's a 'killer app' feature that drives much of current interest in Facebook.
The new audio FaceTime not only takes on voice chat apps like Skype, but also brings Apple into increased competition with mobile carriers and the practice of billing users per minute to use old fashioned telephony networks rather than just providing raw data service.
The new Control Center even incorporates a rapidly accessible "flashlight" for activating an iPhone's LED, virtually erasing the demand for such dedicated flashlight apps.
The new Weather widget also more directly encroaches upon the market for third party weather apps.
As several readers have noted, Apple's new iCloud synched Keychain for passwords and other secure data integrate the features of third party apps such as 1Password and LastPass on both iOS and OS X.
And while Apple has also competed against Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Office apps with its own Safari and iWork apps, few could be much concerned about competition between giants. However, when Apple begins stepping on the work of small developers, there's often more populist concern for the little guy.
In the early development of Mac OS X, Apple first outraged minor app developer Karelia when it debuted a new version of its Sherlock search tool in 2001 that effectively killed the developer's existing Watson (below).
In 2003, Apple unveiled its web-based Dashboard widget layer that similarly sidelined Konfabulator (below). And a variety of core bundled OS X apps have erased much of the potential market for third party email, PDF, music, chat and other software.
On iOS, Apple had initially seemed to be content working on the platform for third parties to use. This sits in marked contrast to other mobile platforms such as Google's Android, which offered its own GPS turn-based directions app since 2009, for example.
Microsoft's Windows Phone similarly directs more attention to its own features rather than showcasing third party apps, in part because its so difficult to launch a new platform and magically collect a vast collection of third party titles for it.
Apple's new direction for iOS 7 indicates that it is less hesitant to expand the platform in ways that compete with third party services and apps.
That's not entirely new, given the appearance of features like GameCenter (which destroyed OpenFeint) or even Apple's own expansion of Maps in iOS 6 that, like Google Maps on Android, began directly competing against third party GPS and directions apps last year.
But developers working on features that are clearly in the path of Apple's future strategic directions should take note: the company isn't afraid to delight its own users at the expense of smaller, slower moving businesses in its way.
Attention App Store developers: Apple isn't afraid to extend new versions of iOS in directions that may overlap your own goals.
After thirty years of carefully avoiding most direct competition with its third party developers' apps, the new iOS 7 appears to ready to bundle useful app functionality directly into the platform whenever it makes sense.
Apps now in the iOS
Some of the most prominent examples: the new iTunes Radio (shown below) takes on a market formerly left to third party apps such as Pandora, leveraging the ubiquity of iTunes and integrating the service with iTunes Match.The new Camera offers a lot of feature overlap with Instagram, making it a natural way for iOS users to capture photos (including Instagram-like square pictures), apply filters, and share with various services.
Additionally, Photos expands support for Photo Stream to include both photo and video sharing, including shared, collaborative albums. That's a 'killer app' feature that drives much of current interest in Facebook.
The new audio FaceTime not only takes on voice chat apps like Skype, but also brings Apple into increased competition with mobile carriers and the practice of billing users per minute to use old fashioned telephony networks rather than just providing raw data service.
The new Control Center even incorporates a rapidly accessible "flashlight" for activating an iPhone's LED, virtually erasing the demand for such dedicated flashlight apps.
The new Weather widget also more directly encroaches upon the market for third party weather apps.
As several readers have noted, Apple's new iCloud synched Keychain for passwords and other secure data integrate the features of third party apps such as 1Password and LastPass on both iOS and OS X.
Platform vs Apps
These certainly aren't the first occasions Apple's direction has steamrolled or obsolesced third party software. Last year's iOS 6 very clearly cut Google out of the picture in Maps, but Google started that competitive game (a game Apple is extending with the new Siri's now default use of Microsoft's Bing to look up information on the web).And while Apple has also competed against Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Office apps with its own Safari and iWork apps, few could be much concerned about competition between giants. However, when Apple begins stepping on the work of small developers, there's often more populist concern for the little guy.
In the early development of Mac OS X, Apple first outraged minor app developer Karelia when it debuted a new version of its Sherlock search tool in 2001 that effectively killed the developer's existing Watson (below).
In 2003, Apple unveiled its web-based Dashboard widget layer that similarly sidelined Konfabulator (below). And a variety of core bundled OS X apps have erased much of the potential market for third party email, PDF, music, chat and other software.
On iOS, Apple had initially seemed to be content working on the platform for third parties to use. This sits in marked contrast to other mobile platforms such as Google's Android, which offered its own GPS turn-based directions app since 2009, for example.
Microsoft's Windows Phone similarly directs more attention to its own features rather than showcasing third party apps, in part because its so difficult to launch a new platform and magically collect a vast collection of third party titles for it.
Apple's new direction for iOS 7 indicates that it is less hesitant to expand the platform in ways that compete with third party services and apps.
That's not entirely new, given the appearance of features like GameCenter (which destroyed OpenFeint) or even Apple's own expansion of Maps in iOS 6 that, like Google Maps on Android, began directly competing against third party GPS and directions apps last year.
But developers working on features that are clearly in the path of Apple's future strategic directions should take note: the company isn't afraid to delight its own users at the expense of smaller, slower moving businesses in its way.
Comments
Life in the big city...
I think the iCloud Keychain is going to kill a few of password vault apps.
As for them stepping on third parties, well that sucks. There's a conflict between the integrated ease of use and not stepping on the little guy that probably won't ever be fully resolved. Pandora's gotta be really mad right now, though, and I like Pandora, but iRadio looks great and makes a lot of sense with its integrated purchasing.
Poor flashlight Apps..... And cya Pandora.
But Camera challenging Instagram? lol.... absolutely comical commentary.
The weather app resembles Yahoo's app in various ways.
Half of Pandora is the apps ability to choose music you like. I've tried other similar apps and they are so far wrong it's unbelievable.
Someone who uses Pandora would be more likely to stay with Pandora. New users are more likely to use built in stuff.
As with all things, app choice is down to quality and social recommendation, and time will tell how good these really are.
Screw 'em and screw their toes. Apple will do what they did better, anyway.
Nobody promises them that the demand won't eventually be met more directly. Nobody promises that the success will go on forever.
Of course, if they own necessary IP, Apple better buy it! (As they have often done.)
(I've made some Pandora stations I really like. I'll continue listening to them, and will be glad to have the Apple service to choose from as well.)
Quote:
After thirty years of carefully avoiding most direct competition with its third party developers' apps, the new iOS 7 appears to ready to bundle useful app functionality directly into the platform whenever it makes sense.
In other words, if something makes sense to do, then it should be done. This type of revolutionary and innovative thinking seems so obvious once someone has voiced it. Now everyone will be wondering why they didn't think of it first.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Postulant
It's not stepping on toes... It's choice. That's a good thing, eh?
Precisely. Like the much hyperventilated Apple Maps. Hell, one set of clicks and there was an icon on my Homescreen that said "Google Maps" just like before.... Or could have if I'd wanted to be tracked in my every move by anyone other than those handsome and clever (and well dressed I'm sure!) people at NSA....
[waves shyly at my computer's "off" camera...]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tallest Skil
Screw 'em and screw their toes. Apple will do what they did better, anyway.
Or Apple won't and then the indepoendant developer will succeed.
Yay market.
Originally Posted by jfc1138
Or Apple won't and then the indepoendant developer will succeed.
Yay market.
Bingo!
As for small time utilities like flashlight, the app store is full of those sorts of things & most of the developers that created them have lots of other utility apps out there that do far more functional things so I doubt it's much sweat off their back. Apple is in the business of making their customers happy, and developers have to be in it for the same thing. If Apple wasn't innovating & moving forward then the precious platform these developers need to make money would stop growing & dwindle. If you're sticking all your eggs in the basket of something like a flashlight app quite frankly you're a fool, that ship was destined to sail at some point.
Here's a few apps I may drop with iOS7:
1. Fantastical
2. Flashlight
3. LastPass
I don't think it's wrong that Apple is competing as long people can choose what app to use. To be honest though, I'll be switching to the integrated Apple apps.
Does anyone else notice that with shared photo streams that people can comment on, Apple has pretty much built a stealth social network?
Pandora has something like 200 million users, so somebody, myself included, is using it. I like being given suggestions for new music, and have never cared for Spotify. Moreover, on Pandora you can lusten to comedy and all kinds of stuff. With that said, Apple's genius algorithm is considered one of the best. It probably will kill Pandora.