BUZZ NEWS

The iPhone Application Market Takes Off

Posted on September 4, 2009
Aïcha Charpentier

For two years (already!), we have had the pleasure of discussing the multitudes of mobile applications generated across the world. This niche has considerably developed and has become an almost limitless domain.

According to a study of 1000 users conducted by AdMob, an advertising firm used primarily by mobile web site creators, 2.4 billion dollars a year are racked in by iPhone applications alone! In comparison, Google’s Android platform represents 60 million dollars annually. However, this part of the market should promptly grow with the arrival of the Motorola integrating the Android platform.

The numbers above may change at the detriment of Apple, who is faced with increasing competition, even though Apple currently represents 60% of the applications downloaded for US smartphones in July 2009. Concerning the average number of downloads, the iPod touch sets itself apart with 16.4 applications per month. This growth is correlated with the development of Wi-Fi.

Furthermore, 50% of iPhone users download at least one application per month, showing an established and regular consumption.

The time spent using these entertaining tools has risen to 30 minutes a day for 50% of the Android and iPhone users, and to 2 hours a day for a quarter of them. This economic and societal situation seems a lot less surprising when different channels of mobile communication are taken into account.

Finally, following the example of the evolution of the Internet on PC, according a study by Forrester, by 2015, 40% of Europeans will be using the Web on their mobile phones.

Of all these numbers and predictions, it is very possible to envision a decisive media convergence of this medium, which may result in a new era taking root, the "ubimedia" revolution.