Research in Motion on Wednesday announced an application store for its popular BlackBerry line of smartphones. Previously billed as App Center, the new store will instead be called App World and will offer both free and paid downloadable applications.
The launch is expected later this month, with an initial rollout in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom. Potential customers can sign up now at the App World Web site for notification. RIM has already begun populating its virtual shelves with applications by third-party developers, who have been sending submissions since January.
The apps will work on RIM devices that use version 4.2.0 or higher of its operating system, and that have a trackball or a SurePress touchscreen. This includes the Bold 9000, Storm, Pearl and Pearl Flip series, Curve 8300 Series, Curve 8900, and the 8800 series. Trackwheel devices are not supported.
PayPal Account Required
App World customers must have a PayPal account to make purchases, and will have to download an application. Some observers have speculated that the App World app may be preinstalled on future devices from RIM. Downloaded apps cannot be stored on a device’s SD card.
While the best-known application store for mobile devices, Apple’s App Store, offers prices as low as 99 cents in addition to free choices, RIM is setting a floor of $2.99 for paid apps.
The pricing floor could result in either better applications or fewer sales — or both. Apple’s low end has come under criticism from developers, who have complained that, unless an app is a huge best seller, it’s extremely difficult to support the costs of significant development at that price level.
App World also has steps for higher price levels, in dollar increments to $19.99, $10 increments to $99.99, $50 increments to $599.99, and $100 increments to the maximum…