SA app developers stand chance to win $30k, place in international competition

With so many apps out there (Apple’s app store alone has over 900 000 active apps) it’s becoming increasingly difficult to stand out as an app developer.

If you manage it however, the rewards can be potentially enormous. Grab a portion of the 102-billion app downloads research house Gartner predicts will take place this year and you’ll be able to lay your hands on a share of US$26-billion in revenue apps are expected to make this year.

One way to get yourself on the path to app wealth and glory is to enter as many competitions as possible. This both forces you to push yourself and allows you to measure your progress against other app developers.

One competition that looks like it could be worth entering this year is the South African leg of the international App Star challenge. Presented by African cellular giant Vodacom, the competition aims to pit the skills of South African app developers with those from Egypt, India, Kenya and Tanzania. The top developers also stand a chance to win their share of US$30 000 total prize money as well as the ongoing income from sales of their app on Vodafone’s App Store.

The winners of the international round will take home US$12 000, US$6 000 and US$4 000 for the first, second and third prize respectively and consolation prizes of tablets and smartphones worth $3 000 will also be awarded.

In an official press release Portia Maurice, Managing Executive for Digital Services at Vodacom said: “This is the third year that we’ve run this challenge and South Africa has great potential to bring the top honours home.”

At the same time, the company has launched an App Idea Contest where anyone can submit smart phone app ideas. App ideas should be in health and safety, mobile commerce, environment and agriculture. Winners will take home the latest smartphones.

“All we need to develop successful apps are brainpower and ingenuity, something we’ve got in abundance. This is a great chance to hone your skills, marry technology to a useful purpose, win great prize money, and most importantly gain recognition. We’re looking forward to being blown away by this year’s entries and showcase to the world the apps that are being developed through the Vodacom Developer Programme”, Maurice added.

From today, app developers can register on the competition site to take part in the competition. The South African of the competition will be judged on 22 November 2013, with the developers of the two best apps being sent to Nairobi, Kenya for the international competition which takes place on 11 December 2013. App Star Challenge entries must be linked to one or more of the following areas: health, education, local entertainment, games and utilities, and run on either Android or Java. All entries must be received by 23:59 on 25 October 2013.