Deploying tool for our existing customers to iPhone and Android

We will be developing a free tool for our existing customers. I have no experience with iPhone and Android but as far as I'm aware you can't just put a file online and add a download link to it.

I'm wondering what are the best options to deliver this application to our customers? Should we just place it in App Store and Android Market (even though it might confuse the people who stumble upon the app and have no idea what or who it's for)?

I'm also aware of Apple's开发者_JAVA技巧 Enterprise Program. I'm not sure how it works technically but it sounds like it can be distributed from local network only, or am I wrong? The app should be obtainable online.

Is it possible to put app in App Store/Market without making it searchable & browseable in the app list of the Store/Market but accessible via direct link only?

Thank you for any suggestions.

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For iPhone you need to use the iOS Enterprise Program to create your private market as long as the devices are not jailbreaked.

For Android you can distribute the installation file (.apk file) over your website. You have to tell the users to check the option "Install apps from unknown sources" (look here) in their preferences.

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It really sounds like a "mobile web app" is what you're looking for.

There are several toolkits for styling web pages to look and act like an iPhone/Android app.

The user simply navigates to your site, and you can detect if they're browsing from a mobile device and render the page(s) based on that or redirect them to device specific sites.

Users can bookmark your site to create an icon on their home screen.

If your app doesn't depend on a remote connection, you can also just do everything in Javascript and the user can use your app offline.