You Will Soon Be Able to Pre-Order IOS and Mac Apps

In response to the minimalist trend of destroying wishlists and desktop downloads , the iOS App Store has added a feature that lets developers open their apps for pre-orders up to 90 days in advance. (This feature is also available on the Mac App Store.)

Pre-orders are only available after the app is approved by the App Store, and customers will not be charged until they download the app. So it probably won’t lead to useless or fraudulent presales. This could be another way for larger app makers to dominate search advertising using three-month pre-order campaigns that smaller competitors cannot afford. Or it could be a way for small creators to build their word-of-mouth in advance and make it to the top lists on the first day.

Pre-orders are useful for any app that promotes on the Today tab in the App Store, such as Reigns: Her Majesty , a witty and artsy mobile game about becoming a queen. Apple posted some flamboyant articles about the game in the days leading up to its launch, and I’m sure the creators would like Apple to add pre-order links.

Of course, we cannot link to these articles here because Apple only allows you to read them in the App Store, which is hostile towards consumers and app developers. Classic apple.

Apple Includes App Store Preorders | Ars Technica

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