High Download Rates Don’t Necessarily Spell Success for Apple’s App Store

In-Stat, a company whose market intelligence combines technical, market and end-user research and database models to analyze the Mobile Internet and Digital Entertainment ecosystems, has conducted a new research based on smartphone user trends. The company has learned that, for free apps, usage is what determines success. Therefore, monitoring free iPhone apps by downloads “provides only half of the story,” according to Frank Dickson, In-Stat analyst.

In-Stat claims in a report issued today that, “The fight for market dominance has heated up as mobile subscribers take to mobile smartphone apps in rapidly increasing numbers.” The company acnowledges that, “While users are downloading applications at a phenomenal rate, Apple users download 2.4 times more applications than the average smartphone user.” It concludes by saying that downloads don’t account as the only success factor in this matrix.

An analyst with In-Stat is quoted in the report as signaling that, for iPhone-application monitoring, it is more important to track how many of these apps are being deleted and, for those that aren’t, how they are used, and for how long.

“Monitoring mobile application success by downloads alone is like driving your car and only using the rear view mirror; it provides only half of the story,” Frank Dickson, In-Stat analyst, asserts. “Especially for free applications,” he outlines, “usage is what determines success. Our research indicates that social networking and phone tools and utilities provide better returns for developers as they have above-average usage and below-average deletion rates.”

The press release provides some of the key findings from In-Stat’s recent research, which include:

- Increased competition and aggressive pricing strategies are starting to create significant price pressures in the market. Certain price points are emerging for premium applications; developers should price their products accordingly.
- Free mapping and directions were the most downloaded apps on most platforms, but just sixth on Apple.
- Only 3% of Palm OS users have downloaded free social networking applications, compared to 31% of total respondents.

Visit In-Stat’s official website for the full scoop on the report in question. A free sample is available by contacting the company at epotter@reedbusiness.com, while the full report costs $2,995 (US).