Android apps made more money than iOS apps in 2014. (Photo : Reuters)
With the significant contribution of China's massive Android application stores, Android made more money than iOS apps in 2014, according to a report from tech-intensive investment bank, Digi-Capital.
"Accepted wisdom and research tells us that iOS makes more money than Google Play, despite Google Play having more downloads. Nobody would argue with that," Digi-Capital founder Tim Merel initially said.
"But what about iOS versus Android at a global level? Include the massive Chinese Android app stores, and Android didn't just dominate download volumes, it made more money than iOS last year," he stressed out later.
However, industry experts said that iOS apps are still more lucrative in terms of per-download basis.
"Dominating downloads is great, but downloads can be a vanity metric if they aren't backed up by corresponding revenue. Analyzing revenue data and research across global app stores--including China--changes the picture from iOS versus Google Play, to iOS versus Android," Merel emphasized.
Merel, who is also the managing director of Digi-Capital, remarked: "So where iOS generates the most revenue of any one individual app store globally, followed by Google Play and Chinese Android, all Android app stores combined passed iOS revenue at a global level for the first time in 2014."
Merel furthermore cited that iOS making less money than Android is a big deal.
The huge Chinese market played a vital role in tipping the scales in favor of Android in spite of the lack of consumer-level presence of Google in China, Merel added.
iOS and Google Play are regarded as minorities in the Chinese market, coming behind domestic Android app stores such as Wandoujia, Baidu, Tencent and Qihoo
"Apple and Google took very different approaches to China. Apple embraced China with spectacular success, but Google ultimately exited. Together with China's inherent strengths and business dynamics, the Chinese app ecosystem now looks fundamentally different to all other markets," Merel shared.
"The volume nature of Chinese Android app stores shows how distribution relationships are critical, as without massive downloads the Chinese market is challenging. But hit it big in China, and the streets are lined with golden cats and red envelopes," he emphasized.
