“5 short years later and a $350M app empire is built. Bloggers which we’ve interviewed went from creating 4 blog sites and $30,000 USD a year to building 1 app which contributed towards $30,000+ USD in a day  all by selling the app for $0.99USD”.

It’s almost impossible to remember what the mobile world looked like before the release of the iPhone. I was still in university in 2006 when one of my buddies purchased an iPhone for USD $600. He brought it to class one day and introduced me to a ‘jail-broken’ version of Mario Brothers [for the Nintendo emulator] on his iPhone. I was impressed, but also hesitant to touch the touchscreen which comprised the entire phone, unknowing at the time that it was sturdier than any other touchepad I had ever encountered.

Mario Brothers was my first experience with mobile apps, and it didn’t take long until all sorts of apps started to appear in what seemed to be a “free” app community. It quickly turned into a buzz-word for the entire world and many saw lucrative opportunities through apps.

I attended many conferences that year and through them met many bright people. One in particular stands out. He was an A+ math student at the university of Waterloo in Ontario, and we talked a lot about the possibilities in mobile apps. When checking up on him a couple of months later, I found out that he quit university and moved to San Francisco where he has built a business entirely founded on apps.

iBought an iPhone too, wanting to experience and understand the ‘app-phenomenon’ better. By 2009 apps became more than a trend. They became an expectation of the sophisticated mobile consumer. To sell a handset which does not support apps meant to deny your customer a fundamental privilege of mobile communications, something which even the most stubborn of mobile handset makers (aka Nokia) learned not to do.

More importantly, by 2009 everyone was looking to build apps. There were apps that helped new developers develop apps. Think of it like the MS Visual Basic of programming. Allowing amateur programmers to program their own programs [no pun intended]. And I’m not talking about the Apple Dev site, I’m referring to 3rd party websites which anyone with “basic” knowledge can visit and design their “own” personal app and release to the “iWorld” of apps.  However, during the writing of this blog [which has inspired me to write], I could not find the app-designer app. It was on the news, but since then, it’s disappeared. If you find it, make a comment please?

5 short years later and a growing $350M app empire emerges. Many mommy/daddy-entrepreneurs which we’ve interviewed went from creating 4 blog sites and $30,000 USD a year to building 1 app which contributed towards $30,000+ USD in a day – all by selling their app for $0.99USD. In 2009 games were the most profitable apps downloaded by consumers.

I believe there this is only a beginning to redefining mobile communications. Opportunities arise with every enhancement and new handset which appears on the market. These opportunities are especially attractive to young entrepreneurs who have “little skin in the game” [as a mentor once said to me] and who have the ability to make a considerable splash in the industry by leveraging a comprehensive knowledge base.  Gen-X, Gen-Y and the rapidly growing Gen-Z will be among the leaders in the iPhone/iPad app industry [among other app industries including facebook apps, blackberry apps, etc...]