Are we really just nibbling at the Apple?
Interesting story I thought. More thoughts below.
Apple App Store Downloads Often Abandoned
Only about 20% of people who download a free application were using it the next day, a research firm found.
By Antone GonsalvesInformationWeek
Most people stop using iPhone applications downloaded from Apple’s App Store after the first day, an analytics firm found.Only about 20% of people who download a free application were using it the next day, Pinch Media found. Paid apps fared slightly better with nearly 30% of people still using the download.
We’ve all read how wildly successful and popular the App Store is. I have no idea how accurate the metrics used here are or what the sources were. They don’t provide a lot of detail. It raises plenty of questions in my mind. I’ve seen plenty of speculation that the iPhone “phones home” periodically, and the platform is certainly capable of delivering usage stats. But given the number of apps that also run on the iPod Touch in local mode, just where are these numbers really coming from. How valid can they possibly be? I came away with two reactions. First, and foremost (and painfully obviously), the vast majority of applications for the platform are pure crap. An exercise in programming, but with little redeeming value of any kind. Looking at my own iPod, I’m asserting this as a universal truth, even though that’s a huge generalization. The second truth I come away with is that 83.7% of statistics (including this one) are made up on the spot. Without details of the demographic analyzed, methodology used, and full disclosure of the analysis criteria, these sorts of numbers are even less valuable that all those iPhone/iPod apps that get downloaded and abandoned. Just as Eve coaxed Adam to take a bite of the Apple, we’re often drawn to an app in the store. We take a bite. Unlike Adam, we seem to be most inclined to spit it out and move on.
