Barnes and Noble Submissions

Solar2D Android
#1

Hi all,

I’ve been pondering trying to get into the Nook store but haven’t seen much anywhere on the latest in terms of getting approved as a developer for Barnes and Noble. Has anyone experienced this and what was it like?

I also wanted to make sure that Corona apps could be submitted - seems like only for Nook HD (not Color)? And the method is to compile like you would for Amazon? Is that right?

Also was wondering if people have made any money in this market (say, compared to Amazon).

Any other thoughts would be appreciated too!

Cheers,

Jeff

#2

You can still become a Nook developer… links are on their developer site.

My experience… it has slowed down a lot. Ever since the new Nooks shipped with Google Play, it seems like Nook owners pull down apps from there.  B&N does not allow ads in the apps on the Nook store, so you will have to count on IAP or app purchases instead of ad revenue.

I’m not sure if I would become a Nook developer if I was just starting out. On the positive side, since it’s free (I believe) to sign up, and Corona can compile Nook apps, it’s really not much extra work.

–John

#3

Hi John,

Thanks for your input on the Nook scene. I’ve applied a few days ago to be a Nook dev but haven’t heard back yet. I have a couple of apps out under Twenda Learning (e.g. Box Drop Math https://itunes.apple.com/app/id1020536399) that are in Amazon and Google Play as well so I figured I might as well submit them to B&N if it isn’t such a hassle. I don’t use ads or in-app purchases (yet!) anyway because we develop for education audiences.

So am I right to assume that the compile process for B&N is the same as for Amazon?

Cheers,

Jeff

#4

Yup… .compile the same.  Just choose “Nook” in the Target App Store dropdown.

Good luck!

–John

#5

You can still become a Nook developer… links are on their developer site.

My experience… it has slowed down a lot. Ever since the new Nooks shipped with Google Play, it seems like Nook owners pull down apps from there.  B&N does not allow ads in the apps on the Nook store, so you will have to count on IAP or app purchases instead of ad revenue.

I’m not sure if I would become a Nook developer if I was just starting out. On the positive side, since it’s free (I believe) to sign up, and Corona can compile Nook apps, it’s really not much extra work.

–John

#6

Hi John,

Thanks for your input on the Nook scene. I’ve applied a few days ago to be a Nook dev but haven’t heard back yet. I have a couple of apps out under Twenda Learning (e.g. Box Drop Math https://itunes.apple.com/app/id1020536399) that are in Amazon and Google Play as well so I figured I might as well submit them to B&N if it isn’t such a hassle. I don’t use ads or in-app purchases (yet!) anyway because we develop for education audiences.

So am I right to assume that the compile process for B&N is the same as for Amazon?

Cheers,

Jeff

#7

Yup… .compile the same.  Just choose “Nook” in the Target App Store dropdown.

Good luck!

–John

#8

I have published several apps on the Nook platform (through the Nook App Store) built in Corona going back to 2013.  My experience has been generally very positive.  Here are some key points:

  • Using the latest daily build of Corona, you can target ALL of the Nook devices except Nook Tablet and Nook Color (the first two devices, which run Android 2.x which isn’t supported anymore by Corona.)  This includes the newer Samsung branded Nook devices.

  • Depending on the functionality and performance requirements of your app, you may still be able to target the two older devices using an older version of Corona (search the forums for which version of Corona broke support for Android 2.x as I don’t remember right now.).  The reason you might want to consider this is that there are over 5 Million users of the first two Nook tablets and their devices do NOT have access to the Google Play store (this came with NOOK HD and later.)  That’s a large closed market of potential users.

  • My company has realized relatively significant monetization results on Nook through the curated Nook App Store.  We were pleasantly surprised with this early on in 2013 and this is why we continue to push apps through that channel (I submitted a new app yesterday and have two more scheduled for the next week.)

  • Testing on Nook cannot be done through virtualization/simulators.  You have to get devices.  I recommended picking up used HD and HD+ devices as a baseline for testing (they run Android 4.x and as mentioned are compatible with the latest Corona SDK.)  Obviously, if you are going to target Nook Tablet and Nook Color, you’ll need to get one of those two (probably really inexpensive at this point.)  Also, installing and testing apps on the Tablet and Color requires some magical incantations using the device so be prepared to remember to hold the volume up button and tap the Apps button on screen :slight_smile:

  • There are a few minor learning curve items (300x300 icon, different requirements for App store metadata, etc.)  Some of these are covered pretty well on the Nook Developer Knowledge Base and forums.

  • IAP is a beast to implement.  We used the (required by Nook) Fortumo plug-in and the flow was combersome to wire up and test and results in a somewhat frictional end user experience. (Please note, the Fortumo folks are great and very supportive - this is just a reality of their approach to IAP.)  We did it with an app and then later decided to make the app pre-paid.  Also, you CANNOT use IAP in an app targeting children categories.  This is prevented by Nook policy.  If you are using an IAP revenue model I would consider not using that with Nook or just skip Nook.

  • Large apps are discouraged.  I would caution against trying to onboard an app greater than 250Mb.

#9

I have to say that “Back in the day”, B&N’s store was by far my best store. But most of my recent apps won’t work there and after they opened up to Google Play, sales dropped off drastically.

I still have my Nook Color if I ever get back to building something I think would work there.

Rob

#10

I have published several apps on the Nook platform (through the Nook App Store) built in Corona going back to 2013.  My experience has been generally very positive.  Here are some key points:

  • Using the latest daily build of Corona, you can target ALL of the Nook devices except Nook Tablet and Nook Color (the first two devices, which run Android 2.x which isn’t supported anymore by Corona.)  This includes the newer Samsung branded Nook devices.

  • Depending on the functionality and performance requirements of your app, you may still be able to target the two older devices using an older version of Corona (search the forums for which version of Corona broke support for Android 2.x as I don’t remember right now.).  The reason you might want to consider this is that there are over 5 Million users of the first two Nook tablets and their devices do NOT have access to the Google Play store (this came with NOOK HD and later.)  That’s a large closed market of potential users.

  • My company has realized relatively significant monetization results on Nook through the curated Nook App Store.  We were pleasantly surprised with this early on in 2013 and this is why we continue to push apps through that channel (I submitted a new app yesterday and have two more scheduled for the next week.)

  • Testing on Nook cannot be done through virtualization/simulators.  You have to get devices.  I recommended picking up used HD and HD+ devices as a baseline for testing (they run Android 4.x and as mentioned are compatible with the latest Corona SDK.)  Obviously, if you are going to target Nook Tablet and Nook Color, you’ll need to get one of those two (probably really inexpensive at this point.)  Also, installing and testing apps on the Tablet and Color requires some magical incantations using the device so be prepared to remember to hold the volume up button and tap the Apps button on screen :slight_smile:

  • There are a few minor learning curve items (300x300 icon, different requirements for App store metadata, etc.)  Some of these are covered pretty well on the Nook Developer Knowledge Base and forums.

  • IAP is a beast to implement.  We used the (required by Nook) Fortumo plug-in and the flow was combersome to wire up and test and results in a somewhat frictional end user experience. (Please note, the Fortumo folks are great and very supportive - this is just a reality of their approach to IAP.)  We did it with an app and then later decided to make the app pre-paid.  Also, you CANNOT use IAP in an app targeting children categories.  This is prevented by Nook policy.  If you are using an IAP revenue model I would consider not using that with Nook or just skip Nook.

  • Large apps are discouraged.  I would caution against trying to onboard an app greater than 250Mb.

#11

I have to say that “Back in the day”, B&N’s store was by far my best store. But most of my recent apps won’t work there and after they opened up to Google Play, sales dropped off drastically.

I still have my Nook Color if I ever get back to building something I think would work there.

Rob