App Store developer earnings have surpassed $70 billion

The App Store developer community has now earned over $70 billion since the mobile marketplace launched in 2008. 

The news comes straight from Apple, with the Cupertino giant also revealing that downloads have increased by 70 percent in the past 12 months. 

There's no word on how much of that revenue came directly from video games, but it's fair to assume iOS game devs have netted a healthy portion. 

Indeed, the tech giant confirmed that Gaming and Entertainment are the two top-grossing categories. And we also know that games like Pokemon Go and Super Mario Run were two of the store's biggest growth drivers in 2016. 

Last time we checked Pokemon Go was pulling in 65 million monthly active users, while Super Mario Run amassed 37 million downloads in three days. Nintendo's mobile platformer also had the honor of being the most downloaded app on Christmas and New Year's Day.

"People everywhere love apps and our customers are downloading them in record numbers," commented Philip Schiller, Apple's SVP of worldwide marketing. "$70 billion earned by developers is simply mind-blowing. We are amazed at all of the great new apps our developers create."