App Store download is nearing a billion mark and all of us accept that Apple has done a great service to both customers and developers launching the online store. This is one stop for all to market and to purchase iPhone and iPod touch applications. The App Store concept is now being copied by many rival companies. BlackBerry App World of RIM, Microsoft has their own plan, Android application store and Palm also have the same plan to launch their own stores. 

However, here is a new bold and rather strange replication, SK Telecom, one of the dominant mobile carriers in South Korea is planning to launch an application store to host application/games for both regular phones and smartphones. The plan according to the service provider would be unveiled in June and would be fully functional by September 2009. 

SK Telecom’s application store would cater apps for Windows Mobile, Symbian, Android, and Linux and would be open to consumers in South Korea regardless of their phone carrier. SK Telecom would provide the SDK to local developers and the guidelines to develop various content for the proposed application store.

While we may consider this as an ambitious move, the question remains; will this be a success or a mere wild dream? According to an estimate, there are about 300,000 smartphone users in the country and majority are Windows Mobile users with some on BlackBerries. The total number of users here is just about 0.04 percent of the whole smartphone market, which is very very low for the business model to flourish.

Now the concern is who’ll develop applications if there is no market and what is the purpose of an application store if there are no devices to install? The main worry for SK Telecom for now is whether they’ll get enough titles to create a buzz among consumers. We’ll get to know soon.