Apple courts developers at WWDC
Thousands of developers will attend Apple’s annual conference on Monday in San Francisco’s Moscone Center, where the company is expected to announce tools and incentives for building apps on devices including the iPhone and Apple Watch.
Last quarter, Apple had its first year-over-year decline in revenue in 13 years, hurt by weaker iPhone sales.
Google’s Android has been gaining market share in smartphones around the world, spurred by cheaper devices and improved tools for the same developers Apple is trying to court.
At this year’s event, analysts expect developers will soon build functions into Siri, the company’s voice assistant, and have more access to the Apple Watch.
[...] marketing chief Phil Schiller said in media interviews this week that Apple will soon offer developers a greater share of revenue from subscriptions sold through the App Store.
“This year will be the one to watch at WWDC as the overall market put pressure on Apple to continue to innovate and advance their software and operating system technology to levels above and beyond all competitors,” said Stephanie Atkinson, founder of Compass Intelligence LLC in an email.
The last major product that Apple launched was the Apple Watch last year, but few developers have built apps for it, according to mobile database Realm.
Nick Lee, chief technology officer of New York’s Tendigi, a mobile software development company, said he would like to see Apple open up more options for developers on the Watch.
While Apple popularized the idea of a voice-based digital assistant with Siri, rivals like Amazon and Google have stolen a march on Apple by putting their own voice-powered devices in people’s living rooms.
Tom Bowden, a managing partner with Mirai LLP, a Tokyo software developer, said his firm switched from charging a one-time fee for its language-learning apps to a subscription model in November 2013 because it was challenging to compete with free apps in the App Store.
Mohajer said he’s noticed a trend of big companies, including Google, that have announced major products without putting out specific details on exact launch dates.