Edible Apple

Earlier this week we gave Apple’s app review team props for accepting into the iTunes App Store Skyfire, an app which enables users to watch Flash video content on their iOS device. The app works as a layer on top of Safari as Skyfire’s servers convert Flash video into HTML 5 video whereupon it’s then streamed back down to a user’s device.

Once made available on iTunes, the app was quickly removed as stories of Apple exerting misguided control over the app store began to resurface. But as it turns out, the app was removed solely because Skyfire’s servers were unable to keep up with exceedingly high demand for the $2.99 app [iTunes link]. As a result, Skyfire noted in a blogpost that it would have to make the app available in batches on a first come first serve basis.

Adding another wrinkle to the little flash-to-html app that could, MobileCrunch is reporting that SkyFire thus far has managed to rake in an impressive $1 million in sales. Not too shabby for an app that’s barely been around a week and had to be pulled shortly after it’s release. The developers didn’t divulge precise download figures, but they did note that downloads during the first weekend alone amounted to 300,000. That comes out to about $700,000 once Apple takes its 30% cut.

An interesting question posed by Greg Kumparak of Mobile Crunch is whether or not sales of SkyFire would have been higher if there was no app “shortages” or if the server overload and subsequent news stories indicating as much helped drive sales to an unusually high level on the back of free promotion. Either way, it’s a solid bounty for the folks over at SkyFire.