For its part, Backflip Studios is looking into new strategies by releasing five to 10 apps a quarter and even exploring turn-based gaming, a relatively rare feature in current iPhone games. Anything to get a foot in the door before "the big houses jump in," said Farrior.

After releasing a well-developed app with an appropriate price tag, it is paramount to maintain a relationship with customers that will occupy a significant portion of their lives, guaranteeing that they will not only use it, but they'll recommend it to their friends and even broadcast it to the entire Internet. Every update comes with a new description box, Web sites are getting cheaper every day, and social networking is still completely free. Finding the right combination of these three tools can be the difference between domination and obscurity for an app.

There is no magic bullet for a successful app. Still, it's been nearly three years since the iPhone hit the market, and slowly but surely a tried and true business plan is emerging, with independent developers leading the charge. In other words, explore this new frontier now, while the gettin's still good.

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