The crux of the mobile developer conundrum: Forget the 99% without iPhone

After reading my diatribe last night (“http://mobileindustry.wpengine.com/2009/03/mobile_network_app_stores_utter_utter_rubbish_today.html”), regular reader Terence contributed this point in the comments below:

Something else to consider – there are no shortage of old, crap phones. Should we (as developers & networks) cater to them or wait until they all upgrade to an iPhone?

The answer is simple: Wait ’til they upgrade to an iPhone. Or Android or Ovi capable handset. Anything with a decent path-to-discovery-purchase-and-use.

That’s it.

There is no other answer.

If you’re using a piece of shit Motorola, stuff it. Lump it.

Not unless a mobile operator is going to pay you to develop for other platforms. The development cost, the discovery and marketing costs — usability cost (“I downloaded it, now, how do I find it on my handset?”) — they are just too high.

That’s why 25,000 iPhone applications have been contributed to the App Store and why4.7m applications are being downloaded per day on the iPhone. There’s a route to cash.

There are problems with the iTunes App Store. It’s not all roses. But there’s a clear path to cash.

Everything else is 100% bollocks. Agree?

What am I missing?