6bn mobile apps forecast to be downloaded this year
Just under 6 billion mobile apps will be downloaded in 2010, up from an estimated 2.4 billion in 2009, according to new research.
ABI Research said that the rapid adoption of smartphones – sales of which grew by 20% in 2009, as well as the proliferation of app stores, are the major drivers for this expansion.
It added that the debut of two new smartphone operating systems later this year – Samsung’s Bada OS and Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 – will also contribute to app proliferation. As with Apple, both platforms will have proprietary app stores.
Earlier this year, a report from Juniper Research forecast that the annual number of mobile downloads featuring augmented reality (AR) content will rise from less than 1 million in 2009 to more than 400 million by 2014.
Bhavya Khanna, ABI Research wireless research associated, said: “The iPhone will continue to be the leading app platform, with a database of over 125,000 applications offering niche and localized content.
“Other platforms are still playing catch-up, with Android being the fastest gainer among them. ABI Research expects that with over 30,000 applications now available, over 800 million Android applications will be downloaded in 2010.”
However, revenues from app sales are expected to decline by 2012, with competition leading to downward pressure on app prices, while a greater proprtion of “must have” apps will have free or ad-funded substiutes.
Jake Saunders, vice president of forecasting, said: “As competition heats up, app makers are both dropping prices and ‘going free’ to stay on top of the download charts.”
In December, Screen Digest forecast that revenues from apps will double in the next four years to reach €100 billion a year by the end of 2013.