Apple has unveiled a new service service for its App Store that allows users to trial a limited selection of iPhone apps before buying them.
The service, called “Try Before You Buy”, currently contains only ad-supported versions of paid apps already in the store. These so-called “lite” versions are scaled down with fewer features that their paid for counterparts, so you will still have to buy the full version to experience all the functionality the app offers.
There are currently only 98 apps available in the trial section, but this number is likely to grow fast as Apple tries to compete with the Android Marketplace’s liberal returns policy, which lets users return their apps within a day for a full refund.
The move is hoped to put a dent in app piracy, a phenomenon that has reportedly cost the App Store around half a billion dollars, but will also warm advertisers to the idea of advertising on Apple’s iAds platform, which is responsible for the ads which appear on App Store apps.
Android gets analytics for mobile apps
Meanwhile, just a few weeks after analytics form Mixpanel launched its iPhone analytics library, the company has launched a similar service for Android, now the fastest growing mobile operating system.
The new software lets Android developers track in detail how users use their android apps. Among other features, the service tracks “events” and allows developers to do A/B testing.
The mobile analytics space is still small, with few companies doing more than tracking mobile ads. However, as more and more e-commerce goes mobile, tools like this are likely become essential for developers to understand how users use their apps, and design them accordingly.
