App Store to Hit Ten Billion Downloads

As of this morning, the App Store is just 50,000,000 shy of its ten billionth download, and that folks, is a lot of Angry Birds. If a cool fifty mil seems like a large number of remaining downloads, get this: according to Apple, 350 apps are being downloaded every second! Considering the store is just over two years old, only serves to make this number more impressive. The iTunes Music Store by comparison opened in the Spring of 2003, and just surpassed the ten billion mark last February.

The App Store has grown to be one of Apple’s most lucrative platforms ever, benefiting both the company and the developers behind the apps immensely. The diversity of offerings in the store arguably drives the incredible popularity of iOS devices such as the iPad, and Apple has taken notice. As a way of expressing its thanks, the company is giving away a $10,000 iTunes Gift Card to whomever downloads the 10 billionth app. As the store is predicted to achieve this milestone in the next day or so, Apple has updated its homepage with a ticker counting off the downloads. As the lucky download draws nearer, it’s likely the frequency of downloads will only increase.

According to the Calculator app, if the number stays at exactly at 350/second, the ten billionth download is under 40 hours away. Contests such as these have the potential to propel a relatively small developer into the spotlight if their app is the milestone download. This was the case with Bump (the 1 billionth app downloaded). Get those fingers ready people. If you time your taps right, you may not be paying for apps, music, or movies for a long long time!

Keep an eye on the ticker here.