Data of small developers in Apple ecosystem: App Store brings them more opportunities

      On the morning of June 3, the third-party research organization Analysis Group recently produced a research report titled "A Global Perspective on the Apple App Store Ecosystem". This report explores what behind-the-scenes work the Apple App Store does to support small developers.

　　At the same time, Apple officials also mentioned that its App Store software ecosystem facilitated $643 billion in billings and sales in 2020, a year-on-year increase of 24%.

　　This year of the epidemic

　　In the past year of 2020, the new coronavirus pandemic swept the world, causing immeasurable losses and inconveniences to the lives and economy of the people around the world.

　　Software developers and this industry are actually the least affected because of the way they work. They are using their creativity to help people around the world stay connected while at home or in isolation, and even use software to teach people how to protect themselves, stay healthy, and entertain themselves online.

　　In this special situation, Apple App Store, as the largest and most influential app in the world, played an important supporting role, helping developers adapt to the challenges of this year and bringing various innovations to life.

　　Apple also announced that its App Store software ecosystem facilitated $643 billion in billings and sales in 2020, a year-on-year increase of 24%.

　　“Developers on the App Store prove every day that there is no market on Earth more innovative, resilient, or vibrant than the app economy,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook. “The apps we’ve relied on during the pandemic have changed lives in so many ways — from delivering groceries to our doorsteps, to teaching tools for parents and teachers, to the imaginative and ever-expanding world of games and entertainment. The apps that power our users are incredible: jobs, opportunity, and countless innovations that will power the global economy for many years to come.”

　　New opportunities for entrepreneurs

　　The new study from Analysis Group takes a deeper look at the App Store's support for small businesses/developers, defining "small developers" as those with fewer than 1 million app downloads and less than $1 million in revenue in a year.

　　It is these small developers that have quickly become an inclusive opportunity engine for the thriving global economy. According to the report, the number of small developers worldwide has grown by 40% since 2015 - they account for more than 90% of App Store developers. In other words, the industry is not dominated by large companies, and most small developers still have the opportunity to start their own stories on the App Store.

　　According to data from Analysis Group, over the past five years, more than a quarter of small developers have seen their revenue from selling digital goods or services on the App Store (i.e., in-app purchases) grow by at least 25% per year on average. And the software business can easily be expanded to the world with the help of Apple's system. Nearly 80% of small developers on the App Store are active in software stores in multiple countries - on average, if they sell in-app purchase value-added services on the App Store, developers can earn revenue from users in more than 40 countries and regions.

　　Small developers use App Store to expand overseas

　　The ability to reach the world on the App Store not only helps developers themselves, but also brings opportunities for them to grow their teams. For example, KidloLand is a learning + entertainment app for young children, launched in India by brothers Aditya and Nishant Mohatta in 2012. The app has been downloaded more than 6 million times and has grown to a team of more than 80 people.

　　Aditya Mohatta said: "Our songs have been played over 5 billion times by children in 174 countries, which means a lot to us, especially as a father. This growth also means that we can create stable jobs for local people. Some of our team members have bought their first homes - something we are particularly proud of, as buying a house in India is considered a very important step in life. During the epidemic, we were also able to purchase and donate oxygen concentrators to those who urgently needed help.

　　For another group of developers on the App Store, this is also their channel to go public. According to conservative estimates for Europe and the United States, Analysis Group's research data mentioned that more than 75 companies with iOS applications as their core business have gone public or been acquired - with a total valuation of more than $510 billion at the time.

　　Bumble was founded in 2014 with a team of less than 20 people. The app has more than 4 million active users worldwide and raised $2.2 billion in its February IPO. The company is now valued at more than $7 billion.

Macaron Play Picture

　　Versa is a photo and video editing app from Shanghai, China, which has been downloaded nearly 8 million times by App Store users in 173 countries and regions. Since its launch in 2018, its valuation has increased by 172%, from $55 million to $150 million in 2020, and the number of employees has increased from 25 to 125.

　　“The App Store has helped us connect with customers around the world,” said Tianyi Cai, CEO of Versa. “As a small company, we wouldn’t have had the resources to go international on our own, but Apple has given us the tools we need to expand. For example, we never thought we’d have users in Turkey, but App Store analytics gave us a very clear signal that we needed to be there — and now people there love us.”

　　Behind the overseas expansion, the localized storefronts and payment methods of the App Store mean that developers can focus on their apps and customers without having to worry about these. The App Store supports 40 languages, nearly 200 local payment methods, and 45 currencies.

　　Pedro Wunderlich and Andres Canella from Guatemala launched their app Wakeout! in 2017, which has helped more than 2 million users in 171 countries and regions around the world to exercise in their bedrooms and living rooms. In the past 12 months, Wakeout's revenue has increased by 455%.

　　“Apple’s payment system is critical for us, especially as a small business,” Canella said. “It allows us to expand globally without having to worry about things like calculating local taxes or currency conversions.”

　　Technical assistance from Apple

　　In order to support developers and strengthen its own software ecosystem, Apple helps small developers build applications through 40 software development kits (SDKs) that contain more than 250,000 application programming interfaces (APIs).

　　For many developers, these tools allow them to focus on creating their own apps without having to reinvent the wheel. With these tools, they can easily and quickly add new features to their apps using AI machine learning, AR augmented reality and other features.

　　Primer: AR Home Design is one of them. A three-person team from California launched this app in April 2020, which can help users intuitively feel the new paint or wallpaper in the house through AR. In just over a year, Primer AR has achieved nearly 600,000 AR product views.

　　Adam Debreczeni, co-founder of the app, said, "ARKit anchors our entire app experience, making things that would have been difficult for us to build easy, and we can get creative on top of it."

　　If that's not enough, Apple also has the Apple Developer Academies, which offer courses for new developers who want to hone their skills and help more developers make their apps better. Special attention will be paid to resources related to women and people of color. Tools such as the more basic Everyone Can Program and Swift Playgrounds are helping newcomers enter this world, with nearly 2 million students and educators participating in 2020.

　　Getting Started as a Student Developer

　　Every year, student developers are also the most watched group. The Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) awards scholarships to outstanding student developers. In 2017, Vladimir Danila, a 17-year-old from Germany, was one of the winners. That year, he launched Vectornator, a graphic design application that has been downloaded more than 4 million times.

　　“WWDC helped me connect with developer communities around the world and in Germany,” said Danilla. “These connections helped me meet other like-minded people, and their feedback was invaluable. Since then, we’ve added four more WWDC student scholars to the team — it’s so important that we grow and evolve together.”

　　Next week, WWDC 2021 will open at 1 a.m. Beijing time on June 8. Although people still have to communicate online due to the epidemic, this method also breaks the physical and distance limitations, allowing more than 30 million developers in 227 regions around the world to participate.