Over the last few years, IFTTT has become known for its ever-growing automation that allows users to create and use "applets" linking independent services together. Anyone can create their own applets for personal use (we at XDA love IFTTT for integrating with Slack). IFTTT is also available for Android and iOS devices with many device-specific triggers available.

IFTTT's name is an acronym for "If this, then that". When a device, website or service meets a certain condition, an action is triggered. We like to think of IFTTT as the Tasker for web services. Last November the company revamped the recipe system and replaced it with applets, which allow building more complex triggers with more actions.

At the beginning, IFTTT allowed users to create simple recipes for personal use. Last August the company decided to allow third-party companies to create applets. As a result, IFTTT's functionality was brought to their own apps and services through the IFTTT partner platform. Finally, many companies, including Google, use this platform to publish applets for their products - though this partnership is certainly not cheap and costs $199/month Partner tier or $499+ Partner Plus tier a month.

 

Yesterday, IFTTT announced that developers are able to publish their applets free of charge via a "free" tier. Published applets appear on a dedicated maker profile page. In addition, developers can now build applets with multiple actions. Finally, people can create applets that work on any connected devices, even when they don't own them.

IFTTT co-founder and CEO Linden Tibbets states: “Over 200,000 makers already use IFTTT to play, iterate, and test.” He also added: “Giving them access to the tools our partners have is a no-brainer — it’s a win for both users and partners. We’re excited to see what they create and in the future, we expect to see new services originating from makers as well.”

This decision is definitely a good step for indie developers. Allowing developers to create free applets will give their products, and IFTTT, more attention. Users of these services will also benefit as more applets should soon appear in the IFTTT's database.

Are you using IFTTT? What is your favorite applet? Let us know in the comments!


Via: Venture Beat