App Store's 25 Billionth Download Comes From China with 'Where's My Water? Free'

wheres my water free iconApple today announced the winner of its "25 Billion App Countdown" promotion that saw the company pass milestone late Friday. For the first time in one of Apple's countdown competitions, the winner, Chunli Fu, came from China.

Disney's Where's My Water? Free was the milestone download, and the winner will receive an iTunes Gift Card worth US$10,000.

“We’d like to thank our customers and developers for helping us achieve this historic milestone of 25 billion apps downloaded,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of Internet Software and Services. “When we launched the App Store less than four years ago, we never imagined that mobile apps would become the phenomenon they have, or that developers would create such an incredible selection of apps for iOS users.”

Apple notes that the App Store is currently available in 123 countries with over 550,000 applications available for download. Apps span 21 different categories, and the company has paid out over $4 billion to developers for their 70% share of revenue from paid downloads.

Popular Stories

Apple iPhone 16e Feature

Apple Announces iPhone 16e With A18 Chip and Apple Intelligence, Pricing Starts at $599

Wednesday February 19, 2025 8:02 am PST by
Apple today introduced the iPhone 16e, its newest entry-level smartphone. The device succeeds the third-generation iPhone SE, which has now been discontinued. The iPhone 16e features a larger 6.1-inch OLED display, up from a 4.7-inch LCD on the iPhone SE. The display has a notch for Face ID, and this means that Apple no longer sells any iPhones with a Touch ID fingerprint button, marking the ...
iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Models Rumored to Feature Aluminum Frame Instead of Titanium Frame

Tuesday February 18, 2025 12:02 pm PST by
Over the years, Apple has switched from an aluminum frame to a stainless steel frame to a titanium frame for its highest-end iPhones. And now, it has been rumored that Apple will go back to using aluminum for three out of four iPhone 17 models. In an investor note with research firm GF Securities, obtained by MacRumors this week, Apple supply chain analyst Jeff Pu said the iPhone 17, iPhone...
apple launch feb 2025 alt

Here Are the New Apple Products We're Still Expecting This Spring

Thursday February 20, 2025 5:06 am PST by
Now that Apple has announced its new more affordable iPhone 16e, our thoughts turn to what else we are expecting from the company this spring. There are three product categories that we are definitely expecting to get upgraded before spring has ended. Keep reading to learn what they are. If we're lucky, Apple might make a surprise announcement about a completely new product category. M4...
iPhone 17 Roundup Feature 2

iPhone Design to Change 'Significantly' This Year

Monday February 17, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple is set to "significantly change" the iPhone's design language later this year, according to a Weibo leaker. In a new post, the user known "Digital Chat Station" said that the iPhone's design is "starting to change significantly" this year. The "iPhone 17 Air" reportedly features a "horizontal, bar-shaped" design on the rear, likely referring to an elongated camera bump. On the other...
Generic iOS 18

Here's When Apple Will Release iOS 18.4

Wednesday February 19, 2025 11:38 am PST by
Following the launch of the iPhone 16e, Apple updated its iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia pages to give a narrower timeline on when the next updates are set to launch. All three pages now state that new Apple Intelligence features and languages will launch in early April, an update from the more broader April timeframe that Apple provided before. The next major point updates will be iOS ...
apple launch feb 2025

Tim Cook Teases an 'Apple Launch' Next Wednesday

Thursday February 13, 2025 8:07 am PST by
In a social media post today, Apple CEO Tim Cook teased an upcoming "launch" of some kind scheduled for Wednesday, February 19. "Get ready to meet the newest member of the family," he said, with an #AppleLaunch hashtag. The post includes a short video with an animated Apple logo inside a circle. Cook did not provide an exact time for the launch, or share any other specific details, so...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Coming Next Week With These New Features for Your iPhone

Friday February 14, 2025 6:18 am PST by
The first iOS 18.4 beta for iPhones should be just around the corner, and the update is expected to include many new features and changes. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects the iOS 18.4 beta to be released by next week. Below, we outline what to expect from iOS 18.4 so far. Apple Intelligence for Siri Siri is expected to get several enhancements powered by Apple Intelligence on iOS...
Apple 2025 Thumb 1

Two of Apple's Oldest Products Are Finally Getting Updated This Year

Friday February 14, 2025 6:03 am PST by
Apple released the HomePod mini in November 2020, followed by the AirTag in May 2021, and both still remain first-generation products. Fortunately, rumors suggest that both the HomePod mini and the AirTag will finally be updated at some point this year. Below, we recap rumors about the HomePod mini 2 and AirTag 2. HomePod mini 2 In January 2025, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple is ...

Top Rated Comments

bbeagle Avatar
169 months ago
I wonder if the winner will have to pay taxes on that gift card or if Apple will cover those?
In the United States, yes. The winner will not pay taxes upon receipt of the gift card (because gift cards are untaxed), but only pay taxes after purchases occur with said gift card.

For example, you buy an Olive Garden gift card for $25. You pay exactly $25 to get the gift card. If you use this gift card to buy something later at Olive Garden for $25.00, tax is added, making it, say, $26.25 (with 5% tax rate). You give Olive Garden your gift card, and pay an additional $1.25 in cash.

I doubt I would even accept that prize if I had to pay taxes on it unless I could get the gift card broken up into numerous $100 cards to sell on one of those gift card buying sites.
Wow. Entitlement mentality at it's best.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
applefan289 Avatar
169 months ago
Congratulations Chunli!

Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gemütlichkeit Avatar
169 months ago
Congrats Chunli Fu if you read MR!

Let's hope her Government lets her view it :p
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
flottenheimer Avatar
169 months ago
Congrats, Chunli Fu.
(Wondering how many visits MacRumors gets from China every day? ... @Arn ?)
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
niuniu Avatar
169 months ago
Congrats Chunli Fu if you read MR!
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MonkeySee.... Avatar
169 months ago
$10,000 - that's a lot of music!

And TV Shows and Movies and Apps etc.

iTunes is pretty good. :cool:
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)