BlackBerry Storefront Taking Apps

RIM is accepting submissions for its BlackBerry Applications Storefront...and plans to throw open the doors by March.

Back in October 2008, Canada’s Research in Motion announced plans for a BlackBerry Applications Storefront, which will serve as a centralized market place for third-party applications developed for RIM’s BlackBerry line of smartphones. Today, RIM announced it is now accepting application submissions for the storefront—although RIM had planned to open the submission process in December, the company is still eyeing a “spring” launch for the BlackBerry Application Storefront.

Submissions are open to developers worldwide, although, like Apple’s iPhone App Store, the BlackBerry Application Storefront won’t be open to every program that slides across the threshold. Developers must register with RIM, have a valid PayPal account, and their applications must get through RIM’s consideration and approval process. BlackBerry applications have to be downloadable wirelessly, and have to work without requiring any customization or integration with any additional service. They must also notify users of any airtime charges they might incur, or impact the functionality of the BlackBerry or services to which it connects. And, of course, the apps must actually be legal: they can’t violate privacy or obscenity laws, perform malicious or harassing functions, circumvent DRM, or infringe on anyone’s intellectual property—including RIMs.

But, if Apple’s App Store is any indication, the rewards for nifty BlackBerry applications could be worth it. RIM is enabling developers to set their own prices for applications, and developers will get 80 percent of the sale price of their programs.