iOS App Store more likely to have paid, higher-price apps
updated 05:05 pm EDT, Fri July 2, 2010
Android dominated by free or cheap vs iPhone
Apple's App Store is not only attracting more paid apps than Android but higher priced ones as well, Distimo found today. The iPad and iPhone stores have about 73 to 80 percent of paid apps, but Google's store is controlled by free apps at 57 percent. iOS apps also have the liberty of commanding a higher average price, at $4.01 for iPhone apps across the entire store versus $3.29 in the Android Market.
Android apps are more expensive among the top 100, at $4.27 versus the iPhone's $2.62, but iPad apps are higher in both areas at $4.65 for the entire store and $6.02 for the top 100. Apple is the only one to track the top grossing apps between the two and can surprisingly ask for more money among the top iPhone apps versus the larger iPad apps, at $13.12 versus $9.63.
Most alternative app stores have a similar balance to Apple's, but the pricing balances vary widely and are partly dictated by pressure from the OS makers to raise prices. RIM's BlackBerry App World is the most expensive to shop from with many apps costing over $6, and Windows Marketplace often costs more than $5. Palm has the least expensive apps on average at less than $3 both across the entire store and the top 100.
A large factor in the prevalence of paid apps for the iPad and iPhone was the platform's popularity for games: about nine of the top 10 free apps are games, but the ratio at paid apps is nearly as strong at eight out of the top 10. None of the top Android apps are games, regardless of the kind. BlackBerry, webOS and Windows Mobile apps were more likely to have games, but noticeably fewer than Apple's store.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jan 2010
At least Android can claim more spyware apps
Some study recently found that 20% of Android apps can expose users' private data and/or make expensive overseas phone calls without their approval. Nice job there. But hey, what do you expect for "free"?