[jkhowland]

I think you are exactly right. The indie devs speaking out are largely Game developers.

The funny thing about the Unread story is that if he keeps on releasing new paid versions (like Tweetie 2 or Tweetbot 2) and then charges for them, he'll just have that much larger of a base to launch on, and will make more money.

I believe it's not just about the caliber of apps, it's about the caliber of business that releases the apps. They need to consider marketing, pricing, launch strategies, and app store optimization. They need to maintain a relationship with their customers, and constantly ask what the customer wants. There is a lot more to a mobile company than the app, and I think the best companies (and their apps) are the ones that will survive.

[calebhicks]

I love what Ben Thompson at Stratechery wrote on this.

Pleco: Building a Business, Not an App http://stratechery.com/2014/pleco-building-business-just-app...

[tannerc]

I'm intrigued by your belief that simply releasing new paid versions of an app leads to more profit. Do you have any evidence that such an approach works?

[jkhowland]

It's a common method for indie Mac developers. Look at anything Panic does, or even someone like Daniel Jalkut with Mars Edit.

[jkhowland]

I just remembered that Tower is releasing a V2 now as well.

I wish I had numbers on the effect of those V2 and V3 and even V4 releases.