Sad news from Cabel Sasser, writing on Panic’s weblog:

Transmit iOS made about $35k in revenue in the last year, representing a minuscule fraction of our overall 2017 app revenue. That’s not enough to cover even a half-time developer working on the app. And the app needs full-time work — we’d love to be adding all of the new protocols we added in Transmit 5, as well as some dream features, but the low revenue would render that effort a guaranteed money-loser. Also, paid upgrades are still a matter of great debate and discomfort in the iOS universe, so the normally logical idea of a paid “Transmit 2 for iOS” would be unlikely to help. Finally, the new Files app in iOS 10 overlaps a lot of file-management functionality Transmit provides, and feels like a more natural place for that functionality. It all leads to one hecka murky situation. […]

My optimistic take: we hope that as iOS matures, and more and more pro users begin to seriously consider the iPad as a legitimate part of their daily work routines, Transmit iOS can one day return and triumph like it does on the Mac.

Transmit was one of the most important applications for me as I started using iOS as my primary platform. But that was in early 2015, before the Files app and the game-changing addition of drag and drop. In the days of iOS 8, if you wanted to work with files on an iPhone or iPad, Transmit was the best tool for the job.

It’s unfortunate to see such a well-designed app leave the App Store, but I’m sure Panic’s making the right decision. If the app’s revenue isn’t enough to support development, its better to remove the app from sale and focus your energy on more lucrative endeavors.

I’ll continue using Transmit for now, but I’m going to be conscious of what exactly I’m using the app for these days. Most of what I used Transmit for has been taken over by Coda and the Files app. Once I have a better idea of what I’m using Transmit for, I’ll be on the lookout for an app that will better serve my needs.