Sorry but that experience is absolutely incomparable. It was more like buying software on CD except you got a file. That's not what App Store is.

Opinions don't change historical facts.

That's not opinion, this has nothing to do with App Store, you can tell by the first look. App Store never was about the UI for downloading apps itself, that's just the front face of the App Store service that moderates and verifies content, sets standards and quality requirements. Not even Android Market/Google Play is close to App Store, though closer than random web shops shipping JARs.