Report: Android and iPhone Apps Prices Close Except for Reference
A new report by Distimo, a mobile app store analytics firm, compares the pricing of applications in Google’s Android Marketplace and Apple’s App Store. Distimo’s July report concludes that pricing of applications in the Apple App Store and Android Market is quite similar, except for the Reference category which has a much higher average price on Google Android Market.
The report found that while the average price in the “Most Popular Game” category between the two stores is quite similar, the price distribution is not. The number of 99-cent apps in this category at the Apple App store far outweigh the number at Google Android Marketplace.
The most popular games on the Android Marketplace went between 99 cents and $5.99, with most going for $2.99. However, while most popular games on the App Store went for 99 cents, the store also featured a higher-end set, which was priced between $6.99 and $9.99.
As of late, Android has received praise for its growing catalog of applications and faithful following of developers. Recent analyst estimates put the Android catalog at somewhere around 6,000, a distant second behind the Apple App Store, which currently boasts 65,000 applications.
However, many observers say that Apple’s App Store numbers are inflated due to a large number of generally useless applications. Tech Crunch recently reported on the ousting of developer Khalid Shaikh, founder of Perfect Acumen, and the App Store’s third most prolific developer. According to the report, Shaikh had published some 900 applications to the App Store, all of which were removed upon the revocation of his license to develop for Apple’s store. The applications, which saw an average price of $4.99, were simple aggregation apps that consolidated Web content on subjects ranging from Michael Jackson to professional wrestling.
Apple recently has received a lot of criticism surrounding the App Store’s approval process, which is in stark contrast to the “wild west” approach over at Android.
