Downloads

Downloads are a digital channel in which goods or services are supplied to the customer as a full download or a stream. The customer buys them often through an online marketplace or an app store, and the item is delivered electronically rather than as a physical good.

Because nothing is packed or posted, there is no physical delivery wait: once payment goes through, the customer can use the product within minutes. Downloads can be digital entertainment, software or published content, and they are not only apps — anything that can be streamed or downloaded counts.

What can be sold as a download

Why businesses use downloads

Downloads let a business sell to customers in many locations, provided each customer has a suitable device and an internet connection. There is no packaging or posting to arrange and pay for, and the same file can be sold again and again.

There are drawbacks too. The business still has to set up and maintain its online store or its listing on a platform, and it may pay fees to a marketplace or app store on each sale. It also faces competition from other digital products, which customers can compare and switch between easily. Customers may need help with access or compatibility, such as a file that will not open on an older tablet, and some prefer a physical copy they can hold or give as a gift.

For example, a small animation studio sells a downloadable short film for school assemblies. A teacher three hundred miles away can show it the same day, so the studio reaches schools no shop could serve. However, the studio pays the platform a fee on every sale and spends time replying to buyers whose older phone will not play the video.