RIM sweetens the deal for BlackBerry devs

Mobile application developers are being courted by BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) with a swell of new tools, free application submissions and new money-making opportunities.

RIM showcases new apps built using WebWorks.
(Credit: CBSi)

The introduction of what RIM calls WebWorks will allow developers to create applications for BlackBerry OS using common web languages, including HTML5, CSS and JavaScript. RIM is hoping this lowers the barrier of knowledge needed to make new apps and entices new developers to BlackBerry OS with these more widely known programming tools.

But to really sweeten the deal, application submission fees will be waived for all developers, saving them US$200 per application on submissions, for a limited time. This fee is waived regardless of whether a developer creates a free or paid app, with the developer still earning 70 per cent of all profit generated from any app sales.

Developers looking to monetise their apps further will have new tools available through the API libraries in the software development kit (SDK) for adding advertisements to screens within apps, and in-app purchasing options for upselling users to premium content or subscriptions. If a developer chooses to include advertising in their project they can expect a 60 per cent cut of the ad revenue.

App sales won't be the only way to gauge the success of an application going forward. RIM also introduced new app analytic tools, which will be free to use by all developers. These tools, provided in partnership with Webtrends analytics, will deliver important feedback for devs, showing them not only who downloads their app and in which market they belong, but also which features of their apps are most used and which are left untouched by end users.