The Mac App Store was launched on January 6, 2011, as part of the free Mac OS X 10.6.6 update for all current Snow Leopard users. Apple began accepting app submissions from registered developers on November 3, 2010, in preparation for its launch. The platform was announced on October 20, 2010, at Apple's 'Back to the Mac' event. The App Store (also known as the Mac App Store) is a digital distribution platform for macOS apps, often referred to as Mac apps, created and maintained by Apple Inc.