It’s enough to bring a smile to an angry bird: Apple’s iTunes can boast a half-million apps. That figure likely will get an official stamp of approval when CEO Steve Jobs speaks June 9 before developers at the annual WWDC in San Francisco.
The figure, apparently passed earlier Tuesday morning, places the Cupertino, Calif. company well ahead of its rival Google, which can claim 294,000 Android Marketplace apps for the open-source mobile operating system. Even when Apple’s numbers are reduced to 400,000 through attrition, the tech giant still outpaces competitors.
The figures were compiled by apps blog 148apps, search firm Chomp and EA’s game publisher Chillingo. The trio created a Facebook page with a number of infographics, including illustrating the App Stores steep rise from 2008, when just 500 apps were available.
Games still remain the category still most in demand, followed by books and entertainment. More than a third of the available apps are free, with paid apps costing $3.64 on average, according to the companies. Apple likely will highlight the unofficial figure showing the iTunes stores have attracted more than 85,000 developers. Both Cupertino and the Mountain View, Calif.-based Google have fought to attract developers.
The new numbers only solidify Apple’s control of the app market. Now only have apps become synonymous with Apple, but the company rightly is praised for building a hardware and software ecosystem where apps (for the iPhone, iPod, iPad and Mac) are core to growth. Can Apple continue increasing its apps, or will Android, RIM, et. al begin to slow the progress?
