Apple App Store reaches 10 billion downloads

Less than three years after its launch, the Apple App Store reached its goal of 10 billion downloads this morning.To promote the milestone, Apple had promised to give away a $10,000 App Store gift card to whomever bought the 10 billionth download. Apple said the winner of the gift card was Gail Davis of Orpington, England. The store launched in July 2008 with just 500 apps and now touts the availability of more than 350,000 free and paid apps for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch. Growth of the store's popularity has been swift; in its first nine months, the store hit 1 billion downloads and followed that up with 5 billion downloads in June 2010.The App Store has been such a resounding success for mobile computing that Apple's competitors have been forced to launch similar ventures. Google, Microsoft, Research In Motion, Nokia, and Samsung all offer apps through their own app storefronts.But the venture has not been without controversy. Early on, Apple's app approval process often frustrated developers, who were sometimes left in the dark about the reason an app was rejected. But Apple recently announced plans to publish its App Store Review Guidelines and to allow developers to create applications with just about any tool they want.Updated at 1:05 p.m. with identity of gift card winner.

Apple App Store gets search boost

Apple is adding several new features to its App Store designed to help people more easily find the apps they want.Announced Monday at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, one new feature will bring a new Explore tab to help people find specific apps. Another feature called "trending searches" will allow users to follow and tap into the most common app searches. Users will also see related searches and be able to more easily view the latest search results through a continuous scrolling list.Related storiesFull coverage: Apple WWDC 2014First take: Apple Mac OS X 10.10 YosemiteFirst take: Apple iOS 8Apple itself will try to better highlight what it considers the best apps by tagging them with an Editors' Choice logo.Developers and users alike will benefit from other App Store enhancements. Developers will be able to create app bundles so that users can buy multiple apps in one shot. With app preview, developers will be able to show short videos of the features in their apps so that users can better judge if an app is worth downloading and buying. And through a beta program called TestFlight, developers can invite select users to test their apps.The new and improved App Store features will appear this fall.