"The issue is then getting people to see that our [US]$2.99 product really is worth three times the price of a 99-cent piece of crapware," Hockenberry writes in his letter. And he's right that this is the issue.

How do you break through the clutter of the App Store? That's the responsibility of software developers to figure out.

But it's not Apple's to sort out. It's yours.

Ngmoco's Young has the right idea: Companies carving out a place for themselves in the App Store ecosystem need to leverage PR and marketing resources. They need to make that part of their strategy to win the hearts and minds of customers. They need to convince people that it's worth the money to spend on their applications. They need to buy ads and develop a brand identity and establish some sense of continuity for their customers.

"I see customers complaining about how 'expensive' a $4.99 app is and that it should cost less. (Do they do the same thing when they walk into Starbucks?)" Hockenberry adds in his letter.