Audiobus: Use your music apps together.

What is Audiobus?Audiobus is an award-winning music app for iPhone and iPad which lets you use your other music apps together. Chain effects on your favourite synth, run the output of apps or Audio Units into an app like GarageBand or Loopy, or select a different audio interface output for each app. Route MIDI between apps — drive a synth from a MIDI sequencer, or add an arpeggiator to your MIDI keyboard — or sync with your external MIDI gear. And control your entire setup from a MIDI controller.

Download on the App Store

Audiobus is the app that makes the rest of your setup better.

Apple's new app business model

https://www.techradar.com/news/apple-is-reportedly-putting-together-a-netflix-for-games-streaming-service

Apparently Apple are working on a Netflix-like all-you-can-eat subscription model for gaming apps. This could very well be a business model which will make the 'subscription' model palatable for consumers?

The rumors don't say how developers are going to earn money from this, though. And it could very well be that - much like the streaming music biz - this model will make things worse for the artists/devs. But it's certainly a development which could impact our App landscape tremendously at some point in the not so distant future.

I have no plans to go subscription with my apps any time soon, but you never know how Apple will 'encourage' its dev community to submit to their new model...

«1

Comments

  • Certainly a worrying development. A particular worry is that such a business model would squeeze out the smaller devs. You know, the ones that have made this platform what it is.

  • I'm sceptical about how much demand there would be for a games subscription on Apple devices.

    On Xbox there is a £7.99/month Xbox Games pass that works like that, but Xbox is an actual gaming platform. I think the vast majority of iOS games are casual games and I would be surprised if there was demand for a subscription service in this market. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but if my kids had to choose this over Xbox I doubt they would choose this.

  • I haven't read the Techradar page due to about 5 pop-ups appearing, but anyway I think the worry is what happens to the thousands of pounds us lot have invested already. Will we no longer be eligable to receive updates for the apps we already own, or would we have to buy a subscription - effectively meaning we've paid twice?

    Possibly a good case for putting future app buying on hold for me, I have a wonderful collection of music making tools but no doubt Apple will do something to fuck it all up again.

  • edited January 2019

    The only games that make the platform such a joy for me to game on are the pay-to-own pc/console ports and quality iOS exclusives. I’ve collected a fairly large library - 200+ or so, trying to reward developers who refrain from the F2P cash grab that has spoiled 80% of the market. If they start convincing these devs to abandon p2o model, they can count me out entirely. Judging by the success of F2P and subscription models, I’m sure I’ll be in the minority, sadly enough.

  • Games are a completely different kettle of fish to the audio production tools, hobbyist apps area though. Can't see them forcing anything on any app developer. I'm sure they'll leave it up to developers to choose what they do or else risk losing their trust. Apple seem a bit vulnerable all of a sudden as the downturn in the phone market is being laid bare so I doubt they'll risk rocking the boat much.

  • edited January 2019

    @Carnbot said:
    I'm sure they'll leave it up to developers to choose what they do or else risk losing their trust.

    I think they risk losing the trust of their customers too, if they're considering making us pay all over again for the apps we've already bought.

    It's stuff like this that makes the iOS platform less attractive to professionals.

  • Make it a subscription to the whole app store, and a new hardware device every 2-3 years and I'm in.

  • Greed and control, silly, poisoned, Apple, hope developers are up to speed for desktop land.

  • @MonzoPro said:

    @Carnbot said:
    I'm sure they'll leave it up to developers to choose what they do or else risk losing their trust.

    I think they risk losing the trust of their customers too, if they're considering making us pay all over again for the apps we've already bought.

    Yes, they'd lose mine too :)
    App developers can currently choose to honour previous purchases if they change to subscription. Happened with Patch base recently. I'd already bought the whole unlock, but the developer let previous purchases hold. So at least they can do it.

  • @richardyot said:
    I'm sceptical about how much demand there would be for a games subscription on Apple devices.

    On Xbox there is a £7.99/month Xbox Games pass that works like that, but Xbox is an actual gaming platform. I think the vast majority of iOS games are casual games and I would be surprised if there was demand for a subscription service in this market. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but if my kids had to choose this over Xbox I doubt they would choose this.

    Nailed it.

  • After reading through the article I don’t think it’s really such a big deal. It sounds like if it does end up happening, the App Store will be business as usual but there’ll just be an option to subscribe to a gaming platform through a separate app like in the case of Apple Music and that what they’ll offer is games that Apple decides to do a licensing deal with for said platform. Win win for those developers and the hardcore mobile gamers interested in such a service.

  • I don't see it happen soon but if it becomes true... just another nail in the coffin...

  • edited January 2019

    F subscriptions.. I really rather pay for the installer + license of an app. I really don't like these app store models.

  • office suite pro only a few days ago announced that new appstore policies did not allow them to continue support for their paid app while they are offering a subscription based version of the app. it does make you lose trust in the appstore system ...

  • @Carnbot said:

    @MonzoPro said:

    @Carnbot said:
    I'm sure they'll leave it up to developers to choose what they do or else risk losing their trust.

    I think they risk losing the trust of their customers too, if they're considering making us pay all over again for the apps we've already bought.

    Yes, they'd lose mine too :)
    App developers can currently choose to honour previous purchases if they change to subscription. Happened with Patch base recently. I'd already bought the whole unlock, but the developer let previous purchases hold. So at least they can do it.

    This is true. Same thing happened with the Ultimate Guitar tabs app. Switched to subscription but still honored previous full unlocks as a lifetime pass.

    I wont panic about iOS music’s future until I see @brambos panic. It’s like seeing the flight attendant freak out on your flight lol 😂.

  • Yeah.. no need to panic right now. It's interesting to watch this develop, since they're targeting a generation of users who essentially grew up with flat-fee-subscriptions for everything and who probably have a different view on the merits of ownership vs. having unlimited access than lots of us 'older folk' ;)

    Also no need for the irrational hostility towards Apple. It makes discussing these interesting subjects very tiresome and doesn't add anything constructive to the discourse. It's not like they're reading this anyway.

  • edited January 2019

    Sounds more like ‘streaming’ tech is what is being investigated (where you don't actually install the game) , ala what Onlive was that Sony bought. http://onlive.com

  • edited January 2019

    Also, given how massively succesful the free to play market is for them it seems doubtful that they would slap a subscription on it. The thinking is more than likely to remove the barrier of install times to get people into free to play games where they then pony up for IAP. They would rather people try a half dozen to a dozen games out in the time it would normaly take to install one.

  • @AudioGus said:
    Also, given how massively succesful the free to play market is for them it seems doubtful that they would slap a subscription on it. The thinking is more than likely to remove the barrier of install times to get people into free to play games where they then pony up for IAP. They would rather people try a half dozen to a dozen games out in the time it would normaly take to install one.

    Interesting thoughts. This could tie in with the recent rumors of new iPods, repositioned as gaming devices. They could make that a thin client for gaming, optimized for streaming. Could also apply to the Apple TV, I guess...

  • edited January 2019

    @richardyot said:
    I'm sceptical about how much demand there would be for a games subscription on Apple devices.

    On Xbox there is a £7.99/month Xbox Games pass that works like that, but Xbox is an actual gaming platform. I think the vast majority of iOS games are casual games and I would be surprised if there was demand for a subscription service in this market. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but if my kids had to choose this over Xbox I doubt they would choose this.

    The similar way Clash of Clan sells gems and some other games sell coins.

  • The first thing I did after seeing this was to visit Fixit IPad Pro battery replacement guide. Can be done, so worse come to worst I’ll be unplugging from the matrix.

  • edited January 2019

    @MobileMusic said:

    @richardyot said:
    I'm sceptical about how much demand there would be for a games subscription on Apple devices.

    On Xbox there is a £7.99/month Xbox Games pass that works like that, but Xbox is an actual gaming platform. I think the vast majority of iOS games are casual games and I would be surprised if there was demand for a subscription service in this market. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but if my kids had to choose this over Xbox I doubt they would choose this.

    The similar way Clash of Clan sells gems and some other games sell coins.

    iOS gaming is a BIG business:

    Daily revenues =>
    https://www.statista.com/statistics/263988/top-grossing-mobile-ios-gaming-apps-ranked-by-daily-revenue/

    Sort by Games => https://newzoo.com/insights/rankings/top-ios-games-and-apps-revenues-downloads/

    https://www.apple.com/itunes/charts/top-grossing-apps/

  • Also worth considering is how far we are away from offloading, I already stream games on my Nvidia Shield via Geforce Now, that the Shield itself could never dream of running on its own hardware.
    I would not be surprised if this was a first step to bringing desktop games to IOS via stream offloading.

    Then again, try getting a bluetooth game controller working with IOS hah.

  • I am a little paranoid about the iPad’s music future. I have read a few different articles about Apple recently that seem to be predicting imminent trouble.

    One article focused on the tanking iPhone sales. Apple’s main revenue stream is drying up, and is the reason for the insane prices for new Apple hardware.

    Then there is a lawsuit against Apple and their apparent monopoly known as the AppStore. The lawsuit was challenged by Apple, but the judge let it move forward. If Apple loses this revenue stream, it just means even more financial problems.

    Also, Netflix removed IAP subscriptions from the Netflix app, denying Apple their cut of a pretty large IAP subscription revenue source. It was claimed to be a loss of millions of dollars for Apple. Netflix moved the IAP subscription to its own website or something, and out of the AppStore. If other big subscription-based companies do the same, then that means another disrupted revenue stream.

    Finally, and this sort of ties in with the ever-rising prices of Apple hardware, there was the recent bend-gate and last year”s battery fiasco. I fear that Apple will erode away its super-dedicated fan base as it becomes clear that as a company, it is primarily concerned with making money, and not that concerned with customer satisfaction or loyalty.

    Oh well, sorry for spreading my doom and gloom worries.
    Carry on.
    :)

  • edited January 2019

    @MobileMusic said:

    @MobileMusic said:

    @richardyot said:
    I'm sceptical about how much demand there would be for a games subscription on Apple devices.

    On Xbox there is a £7.99/month Xbox Games pass that works like that, but Xbox is an actual gaming platform. I think the vast majority of iOS games are casual games and I would be surprised if there was demand for a subscription service in this market. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong, but if my kids had to choose this over Xbox I doubt they would choose this.

    The similar way Clash of Clan sells gems and some other games sell coins.

    iOS gaming is a BIG business:

    Daily revenues =>
    https://www.statista.com/statistics/263988/top-grossing-mobile-ios-gaming-apps-ranked-by-daily-revenue/

    Sort by Games => https://newzoo.com/insights/rankings/top-ios-games-and-apps-revenues-downloads/

    https://www.apple.com/itunes/charts/top-grossing-apps/

    Most of those top games would not be hampered by latency issues either (exceptions being Fortnite and the Marvel fighter) so it is a good bet that the casual whale market that would love to not have to even install apps is what Apple is focusing on.

  • edited January 2019

    @CracklePot said:
    I am a little paranoid about the iPad’s music future. I have read a few different articles about Apple recently that seem to be predicting imminent trouble.

    Me too. When you invest thousands of pounds into a device and platform, the last thing you want is unpredictability.

    A couple of years ago I stopped buying apps because of various issues with the iOS and device, the bricking of my iPad 2 curtesy of the iOS update, and Apples price hikes. About halfway througbh last year though I gave it another go, and in the last few months I've spent a fortune on apps again.

    I'm happy. It's great - there's bugs, heat issues and battery drain still to cope with...but it's mostly great. But I'm due a hardware update, and the new Pro's don't fill me with confidence, and they cost a fortune. And they bend. And they don't have a headphone socket.

    Hopefully they'll bring out something affordable this year, but if they don't....and my Air 2 gives up...it's a second hand older Pro or nothing. Should I have got out while the going was good?

    @brambos said:

    Also no need for the irrational hostility towards Apple. It makes discussing these interesting subjects very tiresome and doesn't add anything constructive to the discourse.

    The problem is, if they do go down this route then there's really nothing constructive to add. So people are worried, not just by what they might do, but by what they do do (do-dah?), and by what they have done in the past.

    Hostile business practices will get hostile reactions. They don't give this stuff away for free - we've paid good money for all this.

  • edited January 2019

    @brambos said:
    Yeah.. no need to panic right now. It's interesting to watch this develop, since they're targeting a generation of users who essentially grew up with flat-fee-subscriptions for everything and who probably have a different view on the merits of ownership vs. having unlimited access than lots of us 'older folk' ;)

    Also no need for the irrational hostility towards Apple. It makes discussing these interesting subjects very tiresome and doesn't add anything constructive to the discourse. It's not like they're reading this anyway.

    Agree, that said, you can of course critize the things this will lead to in the (near) future. If companies like Apple go for a download or maybe better access an "everything you want" subscription model it will very hard to compete with the big developers/ companies if they use the same sort of payment distribution keys Spotify uses.
    I'm not very optimistic the way this developes. With music (Apple Muisc/ Spotify) I can understand that you want to be on this kind of streaming services, because you could be discovered and people can dig much deeper into the music you produce. Besides that it can also used to support your live music, etc. Besides music it can be considered as a huge promotion tool.
    Most apps are not made as a promotion tool so I guess that this could lead to drying out of specialized stuff (like audio apps).

    btw The steps to a more non-specialized app approach we can see also in the Appstore nowadays. Some apps are impossible to find through the app store's search engine nowadays...

  • Agree with @Keenan - if you frequent sites like toucharcade you'll know over these years that Apple have had a few opportunities to cater to gamers and have basically failed each time (I was amped when I got my MFi bluetooth controller, new Apple TV came shortly after and things just... didn't... materialize).

    It'll be opt in. It's not going to be mandatory. At best I'm envisioning something like OnLive for Apple. At worst I'm envisioning what others are writing here about F2P games streaming from a remote server so you can just churn and burn through cash without needing to install anything. I can't imagine anyone would give a fuck about the latter to pay a monthly fee, but people can be surprising.

    So hopefully, this means perhaps that Apple is trying again to align itself on gaming and maybe we'll see some good developments.

    iOS gaming is a very different animal from iOS music software. There are a few big players in the music app world, and these apps still drive a premium, but even bigger companies can't charge for games by and large and need to rely on the F2P microtransactions because it's just how the market evolved over all these years.

    TL;DR - This will be completely opt in and I can't imagine it's going to change things for the iOS music landscape.

  • edited January 2019

    @icsleepers said:
    Agree with @Keenan - if you frequent sites like toucharcade you'll know over these years that Apple have had a few opportunities to cater to gamers and have basically failed each time (I was amped when I got my MFi bluetooth controller, new Apple TV came shortly after and things just... didn't... materialize).

    It'll be opt in. It's not going to be mandatory. At best I'm envisioning something like OnLive for Apple. At worst I'm envisioning what others are writing here about F2P games streaming from a remote server so you can just churn and burn through cash without needing to install anything. I can't imagine anyone would give a fuck about the latter to pay a monthly fee, but people can be surprising.

    So hopefully, this means perhaps that Apple is trying again to align itself on gaming and maybe we'll see some good developments.

    iOS gaming is a very different animal from iOS music software. There are a few big players in the music app world, and these apps still drive a premium, but even bigger companies can't charge for games by and large and need to rely on the F2P microtransactions because it's just how the market evolved over all these years.

    TL;DR - This will be completely opt in and I can't imagine it's going to change things for the iOS music landscape.

    Yah, to me music apps (of the sort chattered on this forum) are like those endearing hipster food trucks and F2P games is walmart. The mass/distance/gravitational influence of each others business model is probably negligible.

  • @AudioGus said:

    @icsleepers said:
    Agree with @Keenan - if you frequent sites like toucharcade you'll know over these years that Apple have had a few opportunities to cater to gamers and have basically failed each time (I was amped when I got my MFi bluetooth controller, new Apple TV came shortly after and things just... didn't... materialize).

    It'll be opt in. It's not going to be mandatory. At best I'm envisioning something like OnLive for Apple. At worst I'm envisioning what others are writing here about F2P games streaming from a remote server so you can just churn and burn through cash without needing to install anything. I can't imagine anyone would give a fuck about the latter to pay a monthly fee, but people can be surprising.

    So hopefully, this means perhaps that Apple is trying again to align itself on gaming and maybe we'll see some good developments.

    iOS gaming is a very different animal from iOS music software. There are a few big players in the music app world, and these apps still drive a premium, but even bigger companies can't charge for games by and large and need to rely on the F2P microtransactions because it's just how the market evolved over all these years.

    TL;DR - This will be completely opt in and I can't imagine it's going to change things for the iOS music landscape.

    Yah, to me music apps (of the sort chattered on this forum) are like those endearing hipster food trucks and F2P games is walmart. The mass/distance/gravitational influence of each others business model is probably negligible.

    Have you swallowed Schrödinger‘s cat, mass/distance/gravitational?

Sign In or Register to comment.