Economists at Analysis Group analyzed apps from Apple and third-party developers on the iOS App Store across a range of popular categories to identify their regional and global performance. The study found that the third-party apps on the App Store are among the most successful apps, especially in social networking, food, video and audio streaming services, and other categories.
Juliette Caminade, Ph.D., Markus von Wartburg, Ph.D., Analysis Group said:
The App Store has grown substantially throughout the years, sustaining an expanding community of developers and content creators and fueling a massive and growing ecosystem. This growth reflects the dynamism of the App Store, its community, and its ecosystem, which benefits developers, users, and Apple.
The finding that iPhone users mostly use third-party apps shuns the accusation that App Store is an anti-competitive marketplace
After 10 years of its launch, App Store offers over 1.8 million third-party apps and 60 apps from Apple. And the tech giant states that 99.99% of apps on the iOS App Store are created by third-party developers which makes it a dynamic and competitive marketplace.
The Analysis Group report finds that App Store offers a growing library of third-party apps along with native apps to iPhone users to choose from and third-party apps lead the various app types.
- Third-party apps are the only options for consumers for entire types of apps, including social networking, dating services, travel planning, and food and drink.
- Leaders in app types often vary across countries, with many regional leaders outperforming their globally competitive counterparts.
- Third-party apps are the most popular among iPhone users in most regions for major app types, including music streaming, TV and movie streaming, reading, communication, and mapping apps.
- Across many app types, Apple’s own apps account for a relatively small share of app usage among iPhone users. This is the case even though some Apple apps are preinstalled to enable the core functionality of the device.
- iPhone users often use multiple apps within a single category, especially apps for communicating, reading the news, watching videos, or navigating — underscoring how easily users can switch between apps and the breadth of opportunity for developers.
Since last year, Apple has been under severe scrutiny for its control over App Store. Developers like Spotify, Facebook, Tile, and others accused it of prioritizing its own apps over third-party apps. The new report substantiates Apple’s claims that App Store is a competitive digital marketplace that benefits Apple and third-party developers alike.
