According
to Nielsen, an American global information and measurement company, U.S.
smartphone owners spend around 25 hrs a month on mobile apps, versus 4
hrs/month on the mobile Web.
Well,
we are not surprised by these statistics. Last five years have shown a rapid
inclination of smartphone owners towards
Applications (popularly called Apps).
We
live in a world of apps. Whatever you think, whatever you want can be presented
to you in an application. The daily figure of launched apps has risen from 7.2
to a whooping 7.9 since 2010. The surprising fact is that the market is not
even saturated yet. With the rising number of apps, the appetite of a
smartphone user is also on the increase. From games to socializing, from
journals to music players, from photo apps to e-books compiler; the application
world is offering limitless things.
The
survey further states that 32% of the total time spent on apps is used for
gaming. We totally understand this. The quality and interactivity that games
are offering leaves the user overwhelmed. For instance, games like Angry Birds,
World of Goo, Real Racing 3, Subway Surfers, etc. give robust & incredible
graphic experience to the users.
On
the other hand, 18% of the time is utilized for socializing on Facebook. This
is a figure that can put other social networking sites to shame. Other
categories are entertainment – 8%, Utility – 8% and so on.
Now
you may wonder why mobile web sum up to only 20% of the total time spent on
smartphones?
The reasons are many.
- Unlike apps, mobile web does not offer exceptional experience of graphics, effects or interactiveness.
- It does not have much scope for personalization, neither it changes the appearance or functionality of the smartphone's OS while apps drastically alter the appearance of the OS and offer a wide range of personalization options.
- A stable Internet connection is required for mobile web whereas as most apps function even when the network/Internet is not available.
- Apps offering services like mails, news, social networking further limit the need of mobile browsers.
For
these reasons, apps are dominating the mobile market and this trend shows no
signs of declining. Mobile market researchers predict that the app market will
continue to grow and with at a greater pace.
With
an estimate annual revenue of $25billion, it is sure that apps are here to stay
and play their game. Not only the app market is growing but also the consumers'
love for apps is on a rapid rise. Perhaps that is why the expectations from apps
are higher than ever and a greater number of apps are consumed.
