Adds keywords to submitted apps

Jul 29, 2009 13:49 GMT  ·  By

Cupertino, California-based Apple stated recently that its App Store needed some improvements, and it seems that the first of them have already been put in place. According to the news, the company asked developers to add a list of keywords for the applications they submitted to the software portal so as to improve the discovery process.

It seems that developers need to provide keywords separated by comas, summing up to 255 characters. These words should be used when searches in the App Store are performed on the iPhone and iPod touch. At the same time, the change has been reportedly made to the iTunes Connect too (the service that enables developers and artists to submit content to the App Store and iTunes).

“It is important to enter keywords for all applications as soon as possible so your application can continue to be successfully located on the App Store,” the update from Apple reads, according to AppleInsider. “Keywords can be updated with the submission of a new binary.” As many of you might already know, users find it difficult sometimes to find app in the software portal, given the large number of solutions available there (more than 65.000).

The move follows shortly after Apple's chief executive Tim Cook stated, during the financial results for the third quarter of the fiscal year 2009, that the company was considering enhancing the App Store. “As you know, today we do it by type of app and also have show popular apps and top-selling apps, et cetera,” Cook said at that time. “We realize there’s opportunity there for further improvement and are working on that.”

Other improvements have been also added to the storefront, it seems, including a better match for the performed searches, and more enhancements are expected to follow. Some of the complaints against Apple's way of categorizing applications in the portal were connected to the pricing too, as cheaper apps tended to climb in tops, while pricier yet better ones remained on the outside.