Music Ally

Soon, it may well be easier to list the artists who DON’T have their own branded iPhone app than to list those that do. In the last few days alone, more than 250 artist apps have been launched on iPhone’s App Store by iLike, which is charging bands $99 apiece for developing them.

Meanwhile, Kyte has launched iPhone apps for the likes of Lady GaGa and the Pussycat Dolls, Mobile Roadie has taken Spinal Tap onto the App Store, and everyone from David Bowie to BT to Soulja Boy Tell’em have launched iPhone apps letting fans remix their songs. The days when it was just Snow Patrol and Pink ploughing a lonely iPhone furrow are long gone.

Launching an iPhone app makes sense right now. More than 45 million iPhones and iPod touches have been sold, meaning a healthy addressable base. What’s more, iPhone apps are cool – the PR benefits alone often pay for the development costs. Yet we can’t help wondering when the people commissioning these apps will start looking beyond the App Store to other mobile platforms.

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Microsoft says that when its Windows Marketplace for Mobile app store launches this Autumn, it will have around 600 certified apps available. That’s less than iPhone and Android, obviously (50,000 and 5,000 respectively), but more than the Palm Pre, which currently has 30. Microsoft’s store will allow people to pay by credit card or on their operator bill, and there’ll be a 24-hour return policy for apps if they’re not happy.