Mobile apps are fast cementing their place as a force to reckon with in the applications sector. Smartphones have proved to be extremely popular, and have already amassed a huge user base all over the world. An increasing number of people now depend on their smartphones to make purchases, find out information, communicate with each other and also for their customer service needs, to name a few. As per a Portio Research finding, 1.2 billion people used an app in 2012. For mobile app development companies, it is fierce competition, with a large number of companies vying for supremacy in a market that is seeing an unprecedented boom.
Looking at the present and forward, there are a number of trends in the field of mobile app development which become apparent. These trends are likely to determine where the industry would be a few years from now and who would be the market leaders. With so many mobile app development platforms and such variety in the needs of consumers, it is interesting to look at these trends objectively and understand what they bode for the future of the industry.
Which Platform To Choose?
There are so many mobile platforms now to choose from, both for smartphone users and mobile developers. While statistics hint that Google's Android and Apple iOS are the most popular platforms, there are still sizable loyal user bases for Microsoft Windows Phone and Blackberry platforms. This presents the mobile app development companies with a dilemma - which platform to choose? The current trend says that companies are slowly starting to do away with the choice altogether, developing cross-platform apps that run on all these platforms. A number of old and new apps, especially popular ones, are being made available for all major platforms, a phenomenon which is likely to be seen more often as new apps keep coming out.
Growth and Division
Another phenomenon worthy of note is the division of devices that has suddenly become rampant in the market. The user base is steadily getting more divided between conventional smartphones, tablets with large displays and different user experience, and "phablets"; a cross between the two. Also, in addition to the main app store that each of the platforms carry as an integrated feature, many companies have also started implementing their own app stores to increase profit and be aware of current usage trends. These happenings are sure to impact the market in future, and companies would do well to stay fully aware of the fact that mobile applications of the future need to be able to seamlessly adapt to whatever environment or device they are used on.
With the huge demand for mobile applications at present, maintenance, upkeep and customer service also remain major issues. It is easy to lose tracks of things in a mess of mobile apps and updates, but mobile app development companies need to keep it together, formulate a strategy that capitalizes on current and possible future trends, and come out all guns blazing to make the most of the boom market. Only then will it be win-win scenario for both companies and the millions of mobile users around the world.
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