An analysis of US App Store revenue and download estimates between January 1 through March 31 of this year shows that only a tiny percentage of publishers are enjoying the lion's share of revenue. According to the data, 623 publishers who represent just one percent of all publishers on the App Store, reaped $1.34 billion in review of the estimated $1.43 billion in net revenue generated for the period. The remaining $85.8 million in revenue was split among the 61,677 publishers whose apps are paid or incorporate in-app purchases.
In terms of the share of
overall downloads from the App Store, the top 1 percent of publishers also enjoyed a larger portion of downloads with 70 percent, slightly disproportionate to their ability to monetize their apps. The remaining 99 percent of publishers achieved a 30 percent share of downloads, but, a disproportionately lower share of any revenue that was able to be generated. The top ten publishers on the App Store currently are Google, Facebook, Ketchapp, Fortafy Games, Electronic Arts, King, Snapchat and Amazon, all of whom have apps that regularly feature on the App Store homepage.
The study confirms what many have long suspected about the challenges facing smaller publishers hoping to make an impact with their apps. Visibility, or discoverability, has been an issue that has vexed developers and publishers for some time and is something that
MacNN has
examined previously in an editorial on the subject. Apple is rumored to be working on a revamp of the App Store to make it easier for users to discover new apps from a wider range of publishers.
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