While Google’s Android Marketplace in the past often elicited giggles and guffaws when compared to Apple’s App Store, the Android app alternative needs to be taken more seriously. The Android Marketplace will catch up with Apple’s 350,000 iOS applications in July.
“Approximately five months from now Google’s Android Market will be the largest store in terms of number of applications followed by the Apple App Store for iPhone and iPad,” market research firm Distimo announced Thursday. The researchers based their assumption on the past three months of app store activity and warned volume “could easily accelerate or slow down.”
The Android Market already leads the Apple iOS App Store in free applications, 134,342 apps versus 121,845. The App Store for the iPad held 75,755 apps by March, 30 percent of which are free. Interestingly, the average price for paid applications has risen by more than $1, according to the researchers. They found the average paid iPad app now costs $5.36 – up from $4.34 when the app store first opened.
That increased iPad price could be tied to the falling prominence of iPad gaming apps. According to Distimo, the iPad App Store had 16,712 book apps versus 13,861 games. Could this because more iPad owners are using the tablet for reading? Maybe. Nearly 40 percent of iPad owners don’t use the device for reading and most use their computer for reading e-books, according to forecaster Simba.
The strength of Windows Phone 7 is becoming clearer. Although the Windows 7 Marketplace has been available for less than a year, it’s expected to overwhelm both the BlackBerry App World and the Nokia Ovi Store. Nokia recently ditched its Symbian smartphone operating system for Windows Phone. BlackBerry’s tablet has also been criticized for a lack of applications.
Distimo did not research the influence of Amazon’s “App Store”, which caters to Android users. The store, unveiled in March, includes many apps already available at Google’s Android Marketplace.
[CNET]
Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.
35 responses to “Report: Android Will Soon Top Apple in App Race”
the question is how many of this apps, including apple’s, are useful or just plain ‘ol fart apps?? And how many of the android apps translate well on all android cel phones or tablets?
Apple has around 400 iOS apps (iPhone and iPad). Android is a tablet OS and a Smartphone OS. So is iOS. Granted I haven’t thought about universal apps.
apple has had quality and quantity for ages it wouldn’t kill them to loose quantity there was one problem for this report there was no separation between android tablet app’s and smartphone app’s.
Another consideration: Apps per device. I’d bet that iOS owners buy about 3 or 4 apps for each Android. Also, Android is in the nascent stage, where buyers will pick up every crappy app that looks half-interesting (just like iOS owners did, and Mac users did with Dashboard, and everyone did with Konfabulator, and everybody did with the Egg Throw for Windows 3.1). The real measure will be per capita sales, quality of apps, and sustainability. Apple has those, Android will have to wait and see.
Should Apps be counted just as a bulk number or should quality and security matter? I’m not sure I trust the uncurated Android Apps Market after recent reports by a big security firm that the Android App market is rife with spyware, malware and viruses in general.
That graph is rubbish… it’s not as easy as stretching up the lines in time… many things have to be taken into consideration. Otherwise future tendencies would be so easily predictable. Imagine how easy it would be to play around with stocks!
So this is batting average, what’s Android’s slugging percentage?
The number of apps sold and the number of phones sold are not the most important numbers. The only thing that is important is how much did the developer make or what was the profit margin for the manufacturer of the phone. All this other talk is for the stupid.
Apple offer better dedicated apps for ipad than what is available for Android Tablets.all the new Android tablets I have not seen any apps that have the wow factor that would tempt me to buy one. my favorite ipad apps at the moment are Korg iMS-20 and Amplitube with the iRig.
Competition is a good thing.
We all benefit, whether you are an Apple, Droid, Blackberry, or WP7 user.
Yeah right, and Apple’s app store doesn’t have it’s own fair share of fart apps.
I wouldn’t say it’s rife but I do agree with your comment. Google has always been idiotic in handling it’s own app store with their it’s open therefore submit whatever you want mantra. Interesting how The Great Evil won’t take responsibility when Android security is breached. Personally I think it’s only a matter of time before someone turns Android into their own hacker exploit base of operations.
You do realize if Android keeps growing at this kind of exponential rate it’ll eventually begin to dwarf the Apple app market. If that happens all the devs will start developing for Android first and Apple second and that’s not a good long term scenario for Apple. They start playing second fiddle to The Great Evil and it’s game over for the Curpentino Turtleneck Gang.
I disagree, the last thing Apple wants is to give up marketshare. Granted the marketshare lost is to various different phone makers but at the end of the day it still counts as more market penetration for The Great Evil.
As much as people on here hate to admit it Apple has sat on it’s laurels and has squandered away their market lead. If they don’t get with it it’s gonna be the desktop OS wars all over again with Apple ending upwith table scraps. It’s time for Jobsy to get with it.
Lets see the graph comparing App Store revenues.
Not entirely true. Developers are the ones who decide which platform they want to give primary focus on.
http://www.androidpolice.com/2…
http://www.pcworld.com/article…
It is all about quality as opposed to quantity. I’ve yet to see anything on the Android platform that looks even remotely interesting. Apple’s iOS has the backing of big developers who make great applications.
Bingo.
People forget that it was a small niche of people that had smartphones even when the iPhone 3G and 3GS were released. The iPhone 3G and 3GS made smartphones more ‘mainstream’. Now it seems most things run Android so even your grandparents and the old dear across the street will soon have an Android phone. It’s cheap, has plenty of functionality and soon most things will run it.