A demographic and business model analysis of today’s app developer

Table of Contents

  1. Summary
  2. Introduction
  3. Demographic profile of app developers
    1. Personal characteristics of app developers
    2. Employment profile of app developers
  4. Work environment for app developers
  5. Device preferences
  6. Platorm preferences: current and planned
    1. Android is gaining ground
    2. Further concentration of the top four phone platforms
    3. Growth in Windows
    4. Growth in HTML5
  7. Leading app categories
  8. Ad usage
    1. Performance metrics: ad impressions and revenue
    2. Correlation between paid apps and other strategy factors
  9. Paid apps
  10. App monetization and correlation to other strategy factors
    1. Correlation between paid apps and other strategy factors
  11. Emerging TV-­‐app market
    1. Ads in TV apps
    2. Paid TV apps
  12. Demographic impact on app­‐development strategy
    1. Size of firm
    2. Regional app-market variations
    3. Work status of app developers
  13. Forecast
  14. Conclusion
  15. Appendix A: developer support
    1. Case study: infrastructure (Twilio)
    2. Case study: programming tools (Temboo)
    3. Case study: search and discovery (Hook Mobile)
  16. About Amy Cravens
  17. About the Applica&on Developers Alliance

1. Summary

App developers are the cornerstone of the multibillion-dollar app market. They supply the creativity and the talent behind the creation of the millions of apps on the market today.

However, because individual and small companies are the prominent players in the app-development field rather than large, multinational organizations, very little is known about this segment of the app market.

App developers are concentrated in North America, Western Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Except for high school hobbyists, they are usually highly educated men in their mid- thirties with several years of app-development experience. Their primary focus is on developing tools and utility apps, with a secondary focus on gaming and social utilities.

While paid apps are more prevalent than ad-based revenue models, many developers view apps as projects rather than products, so they are not highly motivated to monetize their applications. Composed mainly of individuals or very small companies, the developer community remains largely unknown and often underrepresented in the app market. Given these challenges, those organizations and companies that can bring tools, resources, and a collective voice to this group will be an important factor in the evolution of mobile-app development.

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