About AppsLists.net iTunes App Charts History and Analysis v1.1

I was recently interviewed about how the iTunes charts work and a range of questions relevant to app developers. Check out the interview transcript on AffectiveApps.com for more info!

AppsLists.net provides historical records of iTunes app charts for a number of countries around the world including Australia, UK, US, Germany, Ireland, Canada, Sweden and France.

Who are we?

We're just me! A one man band. I've worked hard to make sure that the information you see is as accurate as possible. But since I'm here all alone, and only have so many spare hours to work on this, there's always the possibility that I've missed something or made a mistake. If you come across any problems, please let me know asap so that I can fix them. You can also let me know if you have any questions or suggestions.

What does 'BETA' mean?

In programming terms, beta (or the symbol β) means that a product is still under development. Now, don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have made AppsLists.net available to the public if I didn't think it was ready. I'm pretty sure most things on this site are working as they should. I've left the site in beta mode as a reminder for people to let me know if they come across any errors, have suggestions that would make things easier to work or understand, or have a suggestion for some chart information that they'd like to see. It's also to let you know that new features could pop up at any time!

Why are iTunes charts important?

To be honest, I'm not 100% sure how useful a record of the iTunes app charts actually are! AppsLists.net is based on Music-Chart.info. You can find more info about Music-Chart.info at http://www.music-chart.info/about. Being my first excercise in 'playing' with iTunes charts, Music-Chart.info isn't without its faults. AppsLists.net addresses many of the weaknesses of Music-Chart.info, many of which were identified as a result of feedback from people just like you. In fact, AppsLists.net is a complete rewrite of Music-Chart.info. I've created AppsLists.net in the way I would've created Music-Chart.info had I known a year ago what I know today. Eventually, what I'm learning from the AppsLists.net will be applied to Music-Chart.info, and also another similar project I'm working on.

People are used to thinking about the success of music through charts, but I'm not sure that people really have the same mindset when it comes to apps. It will actually be really interesting to find out. If AppsLists.net is half as popular as Music-Chart.info, in my eyes it will have been useful to enough people to warrant continuing the site!

How are the iTunes Charts calculated?

I've been asked this question time and time again. The answer is actually fairly simple, and here's how it goes:
There are a couple of great mysteries in the world, that we'll probably never have answers to in our lifetime. Some of them are:

• How did we get here?
• How big is the universe?
• Is there a god?

.. and then theres...

• How are the iTunes Charts calculated?

Apple are tightlipped about how they calculate their charts. The only thing we know for sure are that these charts are calculated based on real time data - which is why they are constantly changing. In some ways, AppsLists.net is trying to develop a better understanding of how the iTunes charts are calculated, and how they work.

What exactly does AppsLists.net do then?

We take a snapshot of the charts at the same time every single day. We store the data that we download so that we can look at how the charts are changing over time. We analyse the collected data to see what we can learn about trends in the charts. As the sample of data we've collected grows, we'll be able to gain even more insights from it. So stay tuned and check back often to see if we've got any new features to show you.

Who is AppsLists.net designed for?

Anyone really. AppsLists.net is only new so it's not clear who will actually use it. As far as Music-Chart.info goes, so far I've recieved feedback from musicians who are examining how successful their songs have been, people doing research for assignments and fans who want to know more about their favourite musicians - That's just the people I've heard from, there's a whole lot more who've stopped by since Music-Chart.info was started.