Research firm outlines the ups and downs of the two leading app stores today

Dec 21, 2011 13:07 GMT  ·  By

According to calculations by metrics firm Distimo, Apple’s App Store generates six times more revenue than Google’s Android Market for the top 200 grossing titles.

According to the company’s latest publication, both the App Store for iPad and the App Store for iPhone beat the Google Android Market in terms of total revenue generated by the 200 highest grossing apps.

“The Apple App store for iPhone generates about four times the revenue that is generated in the Google Android Market,” according to the research firm.

They found that in-app purchases and the freemium business model became one of the most important monetization strategies for developers this year.

“Half of the revenue of the 200 top grossing apps in the Apple App Store for iPhone is now generated by freemium apps,” Distimo said, adding that “this proportion is even higher in the Google Android Market where 65% of the revenue from the top grossing apps is generated by freemium apps.”

Weighing in on Apple’s presence in the U.S. and China, Distimo’s research found that China now generates 30% of the total downloads in the two countries in the Apple App Store for iPhone.

Another Apple-exclusive aspect noted in the Distimo report was the number of iPad downloads hitting a yearly low in February, a little before the launch of the iPad 2.

However, the downloads surged again in March, following the new tablet’s debut, an occurrence that could be compared to the launch of the iPhone 4S in October, according to Distimo.

“The Apple App Store for iPhone is the largest store in terms of revenue, and it remained that way over the course of 2011,” reads Distimo’s paper.

Interestingly, the number of downloads in the US has been declining for nearly the entire year, said the firm.

“The lowest point coincided with the moment when the anticipation for the new iPhone was at its height in September,” according to the report. “A rise in downloads occurred immediately following the release of iPhone 4S in October, and the number of downloads in the Apple App Store for iPhone reached its highest peak this year in November 2011,” said Distimo.