Apple launches one billionth App Store download competition

Apple is heralding the imminent arrival of the one billionth download from its App Store with a real-time coundown clock and an international competition to win £10,000 worth of prizes.

The phenomenally successful - and widely imitated - App Store only opened its doors in July 2008 and looks set to hit the one billion download mark this week.

Anyone who downloads an application before that moment arrives will be entered into a draw to win a MacBook Pro, an iPod Touch, the Time Capsule hard drive and $10,000 to spend in the iTunes and App Stores. The countdown clock can be viewed at the Apple website.

The fact that it has taken just nine months to reach a billion downloads shows just how swiftly Apple simple, easy-to-install approach to selling applications has caught on. To compare, it took the iTunesMusic Store two years to reach that figure with music downloads - although those were all paid-for, unlike the App Store.

Nokia, RIM, Google and Microsoft have all launched or announced similar Stores for selling and installing programs for their smartphone platforms. But at the moment Apple is so ahead of the game it's almost out of sight.