In brief
According to Sensor Tower, spending per active US iPhone on App Store downloads grew 27% in 2019 to about US$100, a record high and more than three times the 2015 figure of US$33. Games were the largest category at US$53.8.
A recent survey has found that iPhone users in the United States are spending more and more money on apps. Spending grew by 27% in 2019, meaning that each active (in-use) iPhone spent an average of about US$100 (approximately NT$3,000) a year on the app store, a record high compared with previous years.
According to the research firm Sensor Tower, this refers to what each active iPhone in the United States spends on apps downloaded from the app store. It excludes charges for services offered within the downloaded apps themselves, as well as commercial apps that involve consumption, such as Uber and Amazon. The trend in what iPhone users have spent on App Store downloads over the years shows that the amount has kept rising for five years, growing steadily at double-digit rates each year. By 2019, the amount was more than three times that of 2015, increasing from US$33 (approximately NT$990) to US$100.
Sensor Tower's analysis holds that spending on app downloads grew by 36% in 2018 and by 27% in 2019. With the market continuing to mature and consumer smartphone ownership increasingly saturated, this year-over-year growth is still quite considerable. It points to the continued health of the U.S. iOS ecosystem, and the growth rate outpaced that of first-time device users.
Which category of apps accounts for the largest share of this spending? Sensor Tower noted that games remain the main area of spending, reaching US$53.8 (approximately NT$1,750), an increase of US$10 (approximately NT$300) compared with 2018. The other app categories, in order of share, are education, photo and video, music, and lifestyle.
Original article: https://bit.ly/3dQ7voe