Akiller application (often shortened tokiller app) is any software that is so necessary or desirable that it provides the core value of some larger technology, such as its hostcomputer hardware,software platform, oroperating system.[1] Consumers would buy the host platform just to access that application, possibly substantially increasing sales of its host platform.[2][3]
One mark of a good computer is the appearance of a piece of software specifically written for that machine that does something that, for a while at least, can only be done on that machine.
The earliest recorded use of the term "killer app" in print is in the May 24, 1988 issue ofPC Week: "Everybody has only one killer application. The secretary has a word processor. The manager has a spreadsheet."[5][6]
The definition of "killer app" came up during the deposition ofBill Gates in theUnited States v. Microsoft Corp.antitrust case. He had written an email in which he describedInternet Explorer as a killer app. In the questioning, he said that the term meant "a popular application," and did not connote an application that would fuel sales of a larger product or one that would supplant its competition, as the Microsoft Computer Dictionary defined it.[7]
Introducing theiPhone in 2007,Steve Jobs said that "the killer app is making calls".[8] Reviewing the iPhone's first decade, David Pierce forWired wrote that although Jobs prioritized a good experience making calls in the phone's development, other features of the phone soon became more important, such as its data connectivity and the later ability to installthird-party software.[9]
VisiCalc was released in 1979, becoming the earliest generally agreed-upon example of a killer application.
Although the term was coined in the late 1980s[12][13] one of the firstretroactively recognized examples of a killer application is theVisiCalcspreadsheet, released in 1979 for theApple II.[4][14][15][16] Because it was not released for other computers for 12 months, people spentUS$100 (equivalent to $400 in 2024) for the software first, then $2,000 to $10,000 (equivalent to $9,000 to $43,000) on the requisite Apple II.[17]BYTE wrote in 1980, "VisiCalc is the first program available on a microcomputer that has been responsible for sales of entire systems",[18] andCreative Computing's VisiCalc review is subtitled "reason enough for owning a computer".[19] Others also chose to develop software, such asEasyWriter, for the Apple II first because of its higher sales, helping Apple defeat rivalsCommodore International andTandy Corporation.[17]
The co-creator ofWordStar,Seymour Rubinstein, argued that the honor of the first killer app should go to that popularword processor, given that it came out a year before VisiCalc and that it gave a reason for people to buy a computer.[20] However, whereas WordStar could be considered an incremental improvement (albeit a large one) over smart typewriters like theIBM Electronic Selectric Composer,[21] VisiCalc, with its ability to instantly recalculate rows and columns, introduced an entirely new paradigm and capability[22] unavailable on larger computers.[23]
Lotus 1-2-3 similarly benefited sales of theIBM PC.[4][14] Noting that computer purchasers did not wantPC compatibility as much as compatibility with certain PC software,InfoWorld suggested "let's tell it like it is. Let's not say 'PC compatible', or even 'MS-DOS compatible'. Instead, let's say '1-2-3 compatible'."[17][24]
TheUNIX Operating System became a killer application[citation needed] for theDEC PDP-11 andVAX-11 minicomputers during roughly 1975–1985. Many of the PDP-11 and VAX-11 processors never ran DEC's operating systems (RSTS or VAX/VMS), but instead, they ran UNIX, which was first licensed in 1975. To get a virtual-memory UNIX (BSD 3.0), requires a VAX-11 computer. Many universities wanted a general-purpose timesharing system that would meet the needs of students and researchers. Early versions of UNIX included freecompilers forC,Fortran, andPascal, at a time when offering even one free compiler was unprecedented. From its inception, UNIX drives high-qualitytypesetting equipment and laterPostScript printers using thenroff/troff typesetting language, and this was also unprecedented. UNIX is the first operating system offered in source-license form (a university license cost only $10,000, less than a PDP-11), allowing it to run on an unlimited number of machines, and allowing the machines to interface to any type of hardware because the UNIX I/O system is extensible.[original research?] As of 1985[update] Unix's lack of a killer app, however, prevented its widespread adoption by companies, industry analyst Jean Yates said: "I hope [Unix creator]AT&T will go down on its knees to Lotus".[14]
The term applies tovideo games that persuade consumers to buy a particularvideo game console or accessory, by virtue of platform exclusivity. Such a game is also called a "system seller".
Space Invaders, originally released forarcades in 1978, became a killer app when it was ported to theAtari VCS console in 1980, quadrupling sales of the three-year-old console.[28]
Final Fantasy VII is another killer app for thePlayStation.Computing Japan magazine said that it was largely responsible for the PlayStation's globalinstalled base increasing 60% from10 million units sold by November 1996 to16 million units sold by May 1997.[37][60]
Microsoft's acquisition ofBethesda Softworks in 2021 was seen as providing several potential killer app games for the Xbox Series X/S, notablyStarfield fromBethesda Game Studios, which in addition to launching as aconsole exclusive in 2023,[93] became a significantly focused game in Xbox's advertising of the consoles in addition to replacing prior tentpole exclusiveHalo Infinite (2021) as the key visual game featured on the packaging of Xbox Series X.[94]
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart was seen as a killer app for thePlayStation 5 due to being a game released at a point in the console's lifecycle where much of the first-party software from Sony was also supplemented by a simultaneous release onPlayStation 4, in addition to being highlighted for its graphical fidelity and use of the console's various hardware features such as faster loading and the functions of theDualSense controller.[95][96]
Mario Kart World andDonkey Kong Bananza are seen as and were positioned by Nintendo as killer apps for the launch window ofNintendo Switch 2, both for their technical improvements over previous entries in their respective series, and for gameplay innovations such asWorld's open "Free Roam" mode andBananza's destructible sandbox environments that leverage the increase in hardware potency.[97][98][99]
Pokémon games are killer apps for Nintendo handhelds,[100] often topping the best-selling charts for whatever system they appear on.
^Bourgeois, Derek (November 1, 2001)."Score yourself an orchestra".The Guardian. RetrievedMay 10, 2011.Many composers bought an Archimedes simply to have access to the program.
^ab"The lack of a killer app".Computing Japan. Vol. 36–41. LINC Japan. 1997. p. 44.Noguchi points out that every time sales of a particular game console have taken off, it has been because it had a new "killer software". Nintendo hadSuper Mario Bros.,Dragon Quest, andFinal Fantasy. And Sony PlayStation now hasFinal Fantasy VII, which has been selling like hotcakes since it was released at the end of January. Total shipments of PlayStation, which numbered 10 million worldwide as of November 1996, had jumped to 12 million by February 14 and 16 million by the end of May.
^Hruby, Patrick (August 5, 2010)."The Franchise". ESPN. RetrievedJanuary 23, 2015.
^Hickman, Sam (March 1996). "The Thrill of the Chase!".Sega Saturn Magazine. No. 5.Emap International Limited. p. 36.And if there was one game that sold Playstation on launch, it was WipEout
^Kotzer, Zack (December 3, 2016)."Crash Bandicoot's Jeans Look Super Realistic in Remastered Trilogy".Vice. RetrievedFebruary 24, 2023.Taking the classic 2D platformer 3D in a more literal fashion, jumping around obstacles along zany corridors, the [Crash Bandicoot series] quickly became PlayStation's killer app.'
^Jaime Banks; Robert Mejia; Aubrie Adams (2017).100 Greatest Video Game Characters. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 45.ISBN9781442278134....Moreover, Crash was one of the first 3D characters to feature highly expressive facial animations, helping the game to serve as a "killer app" for PlayStation.
^Goh, Clement (November 16, 2020)."The Road to PlayStation 5: A CGM Story".CGMagazine Online. RetrievedFebruary 24, 2023....Called Final Fantasy VII, its combination of real-time 3D graphics and rich movie-quality storytelling gave Sony a permanent formula. [...] The PlayStation also found its killer app, selling 10 million copies worldwide and put more systems in households.
^Craig Glenday, ed (March 11, 2008). "Hardware History II". Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition 2008. Guinness World Records. Guinness. p. 27.ISBN978-1-904994-21-3.
