iOS 6 App Store hurts small studios, developer says

Chris Newman, head of mobile development at Lightwood Games, took to the company's blog recently to criticize the redesigned App Store in iOS 6 because he believes it hurts small developers.

According to Newman, Apple's decision to remove the Sort By Release Date option has a negative impact on app discovery.

"For a small developer, this is terrible news," he wrote. "Although it's only for a short period, the 'new release' exposure is extremely valuable. It's our opportunity to grab people's attention, build the initial user base and gauge the public's reaction without needing to spend a fortune on marketing."

Search results, which he says are hindered by poor in-app suggestions, now display one app per screen, which he believes biases results toward successful apps. He goes on to criticize the new layout for penalizing landscape apps, and for failing to allow enough room to show an app's full name.

Newman ends with a plea to fellow developers to contact Apple with their complaints, hoping that their activism will spark a change within the company.