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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – About ten years ago, Apple opened a peddling store of apps for iPhone, thus unleashing the creativity of software developers and allowing users to s & # 39; 39, take ownership of their mobile devices.
The resulting explosion of phone applications – there are now more than two million for the iPhone alone – has changed the daily lives of billions of people around the world.
He gave us new ways of working and playing – and becoming so distracted that we sometimes forget to look up from our screens. He created new industries – think of services like Uber, which would be unimaginable without mobile apps – and spurred increased demand from software developers and coding schools.
But this has also opened the door to an era of technological anxiety, marked by concerns that applications are serving us a little too well and holding our attention, whether we like it or not.
IN THE BEGINNING
None of this was happening when the Apple App Store debuted 10 years ago on Tuesday. At the time, mobile phones were largely a take-or-leave proposition, with features programmed by their makers, and most of the customization was limited to simple electronic ringtones.
The iPhone was still in its infancy, with only 6 million devices sold in the first year of the device. Then came the App Store, which offered 500 programs that users could take or leave themselves. During its first weekend, people have downloaded 10 million apps – including many games.
Apple's competitors Google, Amazon and Microsoft have quickly launched their own application shops. Together, these companies now offer about 7 million apps. Apple, meanwhile, has now sold more than a billion iPhones.
THE APP ECONOMY
This tsunami app, and the wealth it has generated, has spawned new economic opportunities. Billions of dollars have been pouring into startups based on their applications, from Uber to Snapchat via Spotify, to game creators like Rovio, the creator of Angry Birds. Opportunities for software developers have also flourished.
Apple may have benefited above all. Its "free" apps usually display advertising or make money with subscriptions or other integrated purchases, while others charge users to download. Apple takes a cut of this action, sometimes up to 30 percent.
The App Store is now the growing fasting part of Apple's business. Along with other Apple services, the app store generated a $ 33 billion business figure during the year that ended in March. The company says it has paid more than $ 100 billion to developers over the last decade.
THE OTHER SIDE OF APPLICATIONS
For all applications that applications have allowed, there is also a dark side.
The Center for Humane Technology, a defense group formed by early Google and Facebook employees, argues that many applications are designed specifically to catch our attention, often to our detriment. This makes them "part of a system designed to disappoint us," says the group.
Apple says to share similar concerns. To help, the company adds new tools to the iPhone to track and control the use of the longest applications.
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