Apple today released an updated report for the App Store, reporting record-breaking levels of traffic and revenue in what the company calls the "biggest ever" holiday season.
From December 20th through January 3rd, Apple states that customers spent over $1.1 billion on apps and in-app purchases. During that period, January 1st marked the biggest day in App Store history with $144 million in transactions.
Apple's SVP of Worldwide Marketing, Phil Schiller, was quoted in the company's press release:
The App Store had a holiday season for the record books. We are excited that our customers downloaded and enjoyed so many incredible apps for iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple TV, spending over $20 billion on the App Store last year alone. We're grateful to all the developers who have created the most innovative and exciting apps in the world for our customers. We can't wait for what's to come in 2016.
The latest numbers bring the App Stores cumulative worldwide revenue to $40 billion since its launch in 2008. The App Store's growth continues to accelerate, however, with one-third of that total revenue generated in 2015.
Apple also took time to reiterate its role as a job market stimulator, claiming that the company now "creates and supports" 1.9 million jobs in the U.S. alone, with 1.4 million of that total indirectly attributed to third party app developers and IT support professionals. Apple also notes that it has "created" 1.2 million jobs in Europe and 1.4 million in China by the same definitions.