GetJar | Competition for the Apple App Store?

I remember back in the day when Apple had a reputation for being very innovative and forward thinking. It wasn’t very long ago when we were all in awe of everything Apple. That reputation lasted for so many years, but now a new breed of companies is quickly emerging that, as strange as it sounds, makes Apple look old-fashioned.

GetJar, the world’s largest independent open app store, is one of those companies. Today I was reading my Entrepreneur magazine and I read an article about GetJar that was absolutely incredible. I’ve known about GetJar for while, but I had no idea how big they’ve become or really what they are all about until today. As Entrepreneur magazine states, “While Apple’s App Store dominates headlines and airwaves, independent GetJar has quietly emerged as the mobile application portal of choice for millions.”

Here are some current http://www.getjar.com stats:
57,000 apps
350,000 registered developers
60 million downloads each month

GetJar is second only to Apple’s App Store, and they are gaining momentum each day. The philosophy at GetJar is very innovative. They believe that as mobile apps continue to become a part of our daily lives, they will have to evolve beyond where they are now. By supporting all technologies, all devices and all platforms, GetJar positions themselves to be the one stop shop, the single destination to get everything you need for mobile apps. GetJar goes out of their way to cater to their developers. They promise state of the art tools to create and run an app business.

They also provide massive distribution. Their top developers boast 15-20 million downloads. It is not uncommon for a developer to have 10 million downloads on that site. In return, GetJar insists that developers make their apps free to download. They’ve never charged for anything, which is why I think they’ve gotten so big so fast. According to Entrepreneur magazine, “Developers monetize their applications by incorporating advertising or launching demo versions through the site and upselling full-fledged premium iterations across other sales channels.” Also, it’s interesting that Apple is only present in 75 international markets. GetJar, on the other hand, is available in over 200 countries.

GetJar CEO, Ilja Laurs, put it best when he said, “The business is changing. More and more brands are figuring out a mobile strategy and using mobile applications as an extension of their service. It’s similar to what the Internet was like 15 years ago. If you’re developing a mobile application, you must be able to reach the consumer on any device. We can help.” VentureBeat interviewed Ilja Laurs last month, you can read that interview here.