Apple Looking to Increase Exposure for Free App Store and iBookstore Content?
Late last month, Apple launched a new "Free App of the Week" promotion on the App Store, featuring a single app on each of the iPhone and iPad platforms and offering the normally-paid titles for free. Apple's digital content stores have of course offered free apps for years, but the new promotion seeks to bring greater visibility to content being temporarily discounted from paid to free.
In another sign that Apple may be looking to increase exposure for free content, the company earlier this week registered two new domains: freeonappstore.com and freeonibookstore.com. There is currently no content located at either of the sites, but it seems that Apple may be interested in either creating specific websites featuring free content or using them as redirects to point to existing features.
The two domains were registered the day after Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference keynote, but they do not appear to have any direct relationship to announcements made during the event. Consequently, Apple's intentions for the domains remains unknown.
Outside of the digital stores themselves, Apple has a number of other venues for promoting free and discounted content, including a partnership with Starbucks for free "Pick of the Week" offerings such as apps and book samples. The current Free App of the Week promotion also began as a Facebook promotion on Apple's App Store page, but has since migrated directly into the App Store.
Recent Mac and iOS Blog Stories
• Though Discontinued, Apple Offering a Plethora of Discounted 17" MacBook Pros
• Developers Begin to Update Apps With Retina Support
• New Apple Store Coming to Chicago's South Loop?
• Apple Releases Update for Just-Released MacBook Air (Mid-2012)
• Next Version of Growl To Add Notification Center Support
http://www.macrumors.com/2012/06/15/apple-looking-to-increase-exposure-for-free-app-store-and-ibookstore-content/
