Apple on Wednesday announced that outside developers have crammed the virtual shelves of its App Store with more than 100 000 mini-programs for iPhones and iPod Touch devices.

"The App Store, now with over 100 000 applications available, is clearly a major differentiator for millions of iPhone and iPod touch customers around the world," said Apple senior vice president of worldwide product marketing Philip Schiller.

More than two billion programs have been downloaded from the App Store since it was launched by California-based Apple in July of last year.

Rival smartphone makers have rolled out their own versions of online stores where third-party developers can give away or sell programs tailored to the software used in various internet-linked mobile devices.

Apple boasts that the App Store remains the world's most popular applications shop, delivering games, business, news, sports, health, travel and reference programs to iPhone or iPod Touch users in 77 countries.

"The App Store has forever changed the mobile gaming industry and continues to improve," said Travis Boatman, vice president of Worldwide Studios at the mobile unit of US videogame giant Electronic Arts.

"With a global reach of over 50 million iPhone and iPod Touch users, the App Store has allowed us to develop high quality EA games that have been a huge success with customers."

Apple recently began allowing developers to build subscriptions or other purchase options into content into applications offered free of charge at the App Store.

AFP

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