Google Play’s Dilemma
Google Play’s dilemma is that it is probably one of the most accessed apps in the world, yet one of the apps that makes the least money out of it. The revenue generated is practically nothing compared to the Apple App Store. What is disappointing is that Google Play can be found on any Android device and Androids are perhaps greater in number compared to Apples, mostly because of the costs.
The mobile analytics firm known as APP Annie has come forward with a disturbing piece of news for Play, but awesome for the App Store. The latter’s revenue is 80% above Play, a score that was reached in the third quarter of 2015. But App Annie also noticed that Google’s downloads went up by 90% over the same period of time. The lead that Google has on Apple has risen by 85%, but is it really worth it?
It seems like it is, especially because the companies have different pans as to where they want to take their products and sell them. Apple seems like it wants take a firm grip of the Chinese market. It is not there yet, but judging by the popularity of the iPhone 6 and the new iPhone 6S, it might not be too far away from getting there.
The phenomenon is occurring because Apple made their phones with a wider screen. The south-eastern Asian region is notorious for its tech desires, so a big screen only made them go wilder than they are used to. So Apple is building up, brick by brick, hoping that its products will be sold on a regular basis in this region. How much time is required is not yet known.
The App store is also generating a lot of revenue via games like Nestle’s Fantasy Westward Journey or Tencent’s The Legend of Mir 2 and while there are other apps that are being massively downloaded, games seem to be one of the most prominent areas in terms of money making.
Now Google plays a different game, more as an innovator and educator than a money making machine. Google is at the peak of its strength in emerging markets such as Brazil, Vietnam, Indonesia or India, where users literally do not have the money to buy the latest app on the market. So you could say that Apple has reached “that level”, while Google is trying to cultivate the world towards “that level.”
This is Google Play’s dilemma apparently: most downloads, no money. But the reward is substantial. Google is pulling the world upwards.
Photo Credits wikimedia.org
