Mobile consumers can’t seem to get enough of apps.
Worldwide app downloads grew and revenue grew even faster, at least for Android phones, based on the latest tracking study.
App downloads on Google Play grew 30% from the previous quarter, according to the report from App Annie Intelligence, which tracks downloads and revenue in the iOS App Store and Google Play.
The increase in the number of downloads was due largely to growth in emerging markets such as Brazil and India.
Revenue grew even faster, at 40%, due to growth in established markets, especially the U.S., South Korea and Japan.
By percentage of growth, here are the top five countries, in order:
- Brazil
- India
- Russia
- Mexico
- United States
Growth in Brazil almost doubled from the previous quarter.
Revenue is a different story, with the U.S. leading the way. Here are the top five countries, in order, based on the growth in app revenue:
- United States
- Germany
- Japan
- South Korea
- United Kingdom
However, while those are the growth percentages by downloads and revenue, they don’t necessarily convey the overall state of the market.
By total downloads, the U.S. is number one, followed by Brazil and India.
By revenue, Japan leads, followed by the U.S. and South Korea. Most notably, those three countries account for about 70% of worldwide Google Play revenue.
Strikingly, the 10 most used apps in the U.S. are published either by Google or Facebook.
While apps and gaming apps both grew considerably and somewhat evenly, games totally dominates app revenue, which is consistent with other research. Games revenue soared, increasing 50% from the previous year.
Though this report focused only on Android apps, activity on Apple devices is hardly standing still, as I wrote about here last month (China Leads in iOS App Downloads, US tops in Revenue).
The leading growth categories in Google Play downloads were tools and personalization, with apps designed to speed up phones and simplify the user experience.
Perhaps consumers are downloading so many apps in a search for ways to help their phones help them more.
No matter the reason, apps are still hot.
COMMENTARY: Google reported other revenues of $1.75 billion for the first quarter 2015, an increase of 12.9% from the $1.55 billion reported in Q1 2014. Other revenues comprises revenues generated from content sales and hardware sales on Google Play.
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Over the past several quarters, app store downloads and revenues have followed a familiar pattern. Google Play led in downloads while iOS maintained a sizeable but shrinking lead over Google Play in revenue. But in Q1 2015, iOS extended its lead over Google Play in revenue while Google Play extended its lead in downloads.
Google Play’s worldwide downloads in Q1 2015 were approximately 70% higher than the iOS App Store, up from 60% in Q3 2014. Unsurprisingly, emerging markets like Mexico, Turkey, Brazil and Indonesia were the primary drivers of Google Play’s growth. As the population of first time smartphone buyers in these countries reaches critical mass, the Android ecosystem is likely to be a major beneficiary.
On the other hand, the iOS App Store’s worldwide revenue in Q1 2015 was about 70% higher than on Google Play, up from about 60% in Q3 2014. The revenue performance on iOS continued to be buoyed by two of Apple’s core markets China and the United States. In stark contrast with Google Play, growth on iOS seems to be a function of more established markets.
Courtesy of an article dated June 2, 2015 appearing in MediaPost mCommerce Daily and App Annie Index Market Report for Q1 2015
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