$100 Million for iPhone software applications

http://www.cellular-news.com/story/29819.php
$100 Million for iPhone software applications

Venture Capital fund, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPC has
announced a huge US$100 million investment initiative to finance new
products developed explicitly for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch
platform.

Why doesn't HTC,LG, Sony, or Nokia pony up that kind of money for
developing new software for their phones?

4phun <vic.healey@gmail.com> amazed us all with the following in
news:5f590af6-5bc2-4f5e-bacc-cec4ecca0419@8g2000hse.googlegroups.com:

> http://www.cellular-news.com/story/29819.php
> $100 Million for iPhone software applications
>
> Venture Capital fund, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPC has
> announced a huge US$100 million investment initiative to finance new
> products developed explicitly for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch
> platform.
>
> Why doesn't HTC,LG, Sony, or Nokia pony up that kind of money for
> developing new software for their phones?
>

Because they've already built the functionality into the phone that Apple
is so desperately trying to catch up to? Because the applications that
Apple will tout as cutting edge are already common fare for the rest of the
industry? Because most users don't need or demand the type of childish toy
applications that will roll out for the iPhone?

I don't know- take your pick.

4phun <vic.healey@gmail.com> wrote in news:5f590af6-5bc2-4f5e-bacc-
cec4ecca0419@8g2000hse.googlegroups.com:

> Nokia pony up that kind of money for
> developing new software for their phones?
>

Why pay for something the Linux hackers will do just for the phun of it?

http://garage.maemo.org/
Have a look for yourself.

At 11 Mar 2008 16:15:46 -0700 4phun wrote:
> http://www.cellular-news.com/story/29819.php
> $100 Million for iPhone software applications
>
> Venture Capital fund, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPC has
> announced a huge US$100 million investment initiative to finance new
> products developed explicitly for the Apple iPhone and iPod touch
> platform.


Well, the skeptic in me says that this tells us that there will likely be a
significant "barrier to entry" to get app approval and placement in the
iTunes store. So non-programmers with money are hoping to milk the iPhone
gold rush by buying equity in the small software houses than might need
help ponying up the cash to get certified/listed in return for a cut of all
future profits (at least those profits left after they "render unto Apple
what is Apple's.")


> Why doesn't HTC,LG, Sony, or Nokia pony up that kind of money for
> developing new software for their phones?


Because with a free SDK, and no seal-of-approval or commission-based
distribution system to share profits with, developers don't have to be loan-
sharked to afford to develop. And they get to keep all of their earnings
or can negotiate with competitive distributors (Handango, Pocket Gear, etc.)
in a free-market.