Publishing is hard work and there is an Apple tax.
… So, instead of aiming to debut on the AppStore, more and more developers are satisfied with giving out "TestFlight", which allows beta distribution and testing just by sharing a link, and continue to test flight forever. It seems that there is a quiet excitement, such as the appearance of an unpublished application introduction site.
An unpublished app with a valuation of 10.5 billion yen in 2 months of its birth
This spring, just 2 months after its release, it has a valuation of 100 million dollars (approximately 10.5 billion yen) with 5,000 users. The voice SNS "Clubhouse", which secured investment in , is also a beta distribution group of TestFlight. "A secret club full of VCs (venture investors) in Silicon Valley", "You can hear the inside story only here in real time", rumors arouse rumors, and even though there is no monetization model, it is a "unicorn known only to those in the know". It's called
The app itself is similar to Takahito Iguchi's Iguchi app "Dabel", which was officially released a little earlier. difference.
1. You can't enter without an invitation
2. No logs
Reasons for not rushing to publish to the AppStore
On his blog, the CEO cites the following two reasons for not publishing to the store.
1. Rather than increasing the number of users tenfold overnight, I would like to focus on growing them slowly.
2. Due to the small number of employees (former Google engineer Rohan Seth and two people), the development of functions for a large number of people has not been completed.
It seems that it will be released worldwide eventually, but there is no sign of rushing. The reality is that if you make your debut on the AppStore, you won't be able to do it within your circle like you are now. After a large-scale investment was made while it was undisclosed, it made a lot of noise as a unicorn. There is also a precedent for the "Secret" app.
A place to revive the app that was sunk in the demon 4.2 rejection
In the Protocol article featuring developers who do not aim to be released to the store, Jordan Singer, who is working on the development of the Cash app at Square Inc. Appearing. Singer is mass-producing iOS apps in addition to his main business. Perhaps because there are many one-point functions, it was rejected for the most fearful rejection reason of "4.2 Design: Minimum Functionality" in the AppStore review. It seems that the popular TestFlight distributes small and publishes the distribution URL collectively here?
TestFlight was prepared so that Apple could easily collect feedback before publishing on the AppStore, so the review is not as strict as the store, and the number of people distributed is small, with a maximum of 10,000 people, so monitoring is loose. Since it is only distributed among close friends, there is no need to worry about malicious reviews from strangers, and in-app purchases can be tested without worrying about the 30% Apple fee.
Using screenshots of TestFlight's unpublished apps as a business card will make an impact, and for those who want to have fun in a small way, this is enough.
Where can I get an unpublished app?
You need to download the TestFlight app to use it. Also, if you go to Departures, a site created by BitSuites consultant Thomas Weigt, you'll find URLs for unpublished apps that are looking for testers. If you have a URL you know, you can also propose a publication. Singer, mentioned above, also recently created an "Airport" that connects unreleased apps with testers. Now that we don't know when we will be fired due to the corona recession, the number of people writing code in case of emergency is increasing. It's a little sad that it's a test flight forever, but it's even sadder that it's shelved... It's encouraging that the place for test and trial is opened.
Corrected on August 21, 2020: There were errors in some figures when first published, so they have been corrected.
Sources: Protocol
