The Hitchhiking Developer’s Guide to The Alternative App Galaxy

Matt Tubergen, EVP of Global Strategy & Partnerships at Digital Turbine outlines five essential factors to keep in mind when evaluating alternative options following the recent legal ruling in Epic v. Google.

Don’t panic! The app ecosystem is about to get a whole lot better. The October 7th ruling in the Epic v. Google case marked a critical turning point. This decision loosens Google’s grip on the app economy- a grip that often hindered growth and innovation. If they haven’t already, developers should definitely take the opportunity to seek alternative solutions, including payment systems, outside of Google’s realm.

But while this ruling opens doors, it introduces new complexities for developers. Simply having more options doesn’t guarantee a better future. But it doesn’t have to be as complex as finding the meaning of life, the universe, and everything. So, instead of 42 essential factors when evaluating alternative options, here are five:

1) Payments: Unify But Don’t Compromise

Going beyond Google for payments frees developers from sharing revenues and offers flexibility in pricing and managing transactions. However, this newfound freedom comes with the challenges of how to unify payments across different stores while ensuring their marketing and user acquisition (UA) strategies align with this new model.

Choosing a payment solution with a better revenue share is only the beginning - developers must ask: Is the user experience frictionless for these new systems? Are the systems the same between regions and countries? How will my alternative billing changes impact attribution and reporting? What, if any, compromises will I have to make to the user experience and loyalty? Evaluate payment options with these thoughts in mind before moving forward.

2) UA: Focus on Paid Media and Other Growth Tools

A significant gap in many alternative app stores is the lack of comprehensive paid UA tools. The big question is: How will users discover your app? Organic discovery alone won’t deliver the growth developers need - Paid UA drives over 50 percent of downloads for top-grossing apps. Historically, it has been near impossible to run successful paid media campaigns for alternative apps at scale without a gazillion extra steps for end users. As a new ecosystem emerges, pay attention to new approaches to paid UA that will be offered. 

Beyond paid UA, stores should offer more than just a shelf for your app. Users don’t always need a traditional store to get apps - direct distribution methods, like in-app downloads or one-click ads, can offer compelling alternatives. When selecting a new store, ensure it supports essential UA tools like deep links, direct installs, MMP integrations, and a strong reporting infrastructure to track your success.

Alternative app stores offer another unique advantage - experimentation. Each alt store can provide different opportunities to test and optimise your UA strategy. Landing pages, user journeys, and even the download process itself can vary, allowing you to refine how users engage with your app. For example, some stores may allow you to customise your landing pages for different user segments, while others could offer flexibility in how the download flow is structured. These differences present the opportunity to improve conversion rates and enhance user engagement.

3) Trust: It Matters, But Look Past The Rhetoric 

Traditional app stores have long marketed themselves as the safe, secure choice, often sowing fear about alternative stores. They portray alternatives and side-loading as the "Wild West," filled with malware and shady actors and reinforce this positioning through pop-up messages, permission requests, and multiple layers of confirmation that suck the life out of alternative app installs.

The alternative app future won’t have these user-halting blockers, but trust, safety, and privacy-centric measures will certainly be paramount. Ask questions about the data privacy policies and security measures offered by any new app store. What assurances will the user get that they are protected? What type of signing or DRM requirements exist within a store? How do stores preserve user state? Evaluating how these alternatives will protect user trust while providing a smoother, more streamlined experience is crucial.

4) User Experience: Seek Amazon-Like Features

Consider how retailers and platforms like Amazon have evolved the purchasing process: multiple items in one cart, one-click buying, and a personalized shopping experience that fosters loyalty through points and deals. Alternative app stores will offer similar engaging, frictionless, user-friendly experiences.

Developers should evaluate potential alternative app stores from this perspective: Does it offer special features that are different from other stores to help developers get more from their users? Does the store make purchasing easy? Does it offer seamless transactions and incentives that bring users back? Does the store offer a unique user base for your app? Consumers won't be apt to switch if the user experience is cumbersome or unengaging. A platform that offers a better user experience will help apps build lasting relationships with users and gain traction in the market.

5) Global Scale: Your Growth Doesn’t Have To Be Organic, But Your Store’s Should Be

While organic growth may not be the lionshare of your app growth, it IS what has driven scale for incumbent stores - since they are the built-in default option on every Android or iOS device. This scale is difficult to replicate, but that doesn’t mean alternatives can’t offer it.

Look for alternative stores with the potential to reach global audiences through their own organic growth. Consider carriers and OEMs, which already have established relationships with subscribers at scale. These channels could provide the necessary reach without the complexity of managing multiple versions of your app across different regions. A viable alternative store should offer seamless global distribution, allowing developers to manage one store and one app across multiple markets.

The Path Forward: Building a Better Ecosystem Together

This ruling is a monumental first step toward creating a more open, fair, and innovative app ecosystem. However, developers need to actively shape this future by evaluating their options in payments, UA, user experience, trust, and global scale.

As you evaluate options, don’t forget your towel! Meaning, stay prepared. The future is more than simply finding an alternative to Google. It’s about building a system that supports developers in every aspect, from growth to global reach. But without properly evaluating options, it would be akin to navigating with an Infinite Improbability Drive - fantastic when it works, but unreliable at best.