Remember those recent reports claiming that the Mac App Store would open prior to the Christmas holiday, say around December 13? A new report says yeah, not so much -- look for the doors to swing wide open as originally planned in January.
The Loop is reporting that despite swirling rumors to the contrary, Apple’s forthcoming Mac App Store is scheduled to launch next month and not as early as December 13, which has been widely reported over the last week. While a pre-Christmas launch might have been a minor windfall for the holiday shopping season, The Loop’s sources are saying it’s not going to happen.
One thing that apparently is going to happen: The Mac App Store will arrive on time. You’ll recall that Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced back in October during the “Back to the Mac” event that the Mac App Store would arrive within 90 days -- and that timeline runs out at the end of January.
So how soon will it launch once the clock rolls over to 2011? That’s anyone’s guess, but The Loop seems to feel “sometime on or before the third week of January” is the best bet.
The real question will be: Is a Mac App Store going to have the same kind of impulse buying appeal that the iOS App Store has? Certainly the lure of one-click downloads, easy payments tied to your iTunes account, automatic install and updates and a license that covers all of your personal Macs will make it tempting, but let’s face it -- there are already many great places to buy Mac software, and even in cost-effective bundles. Time will tell…
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