Mobile apps: deciding which platforms and localisations to target

Mobile analytics company distimo.com has recently published a report on revenue from games in Apple's App Store and the Google Play store.

Some interesting findings emerging from their study (which relates to data from September 2013) for game developers include:

• When considering the combined revenue from the App Store and Google Play, almost two thirds (63%) of games revenue comes from the Apple platform;
• A single iOS device form factor (either iPhone or iPad) single handedly generates roughly the same amount of revenue as all devices on Google Play, according to these figures;
• 52% of apps in the App Store (namely games) are generating 79% of App Store revenue;
• The share of revenue from games differs somewhat from country to country, going from 59% of App Store revenue in Germany to over 80% of App Store revenue in Taiwan, for example;
• Not all app stores are equal in terms of revenue-generating genres: Apple players appear to generate more revenue in RPGs, compared to Arcade & Action games which are the predominant genre in terms of revenue on Google Play-- though it should be noted that on the Apple platform, there was more uniformity in the spread of revenue among genres.

One strong take-away message from the figures for developers and localisers appears to be: if your genre fits, do not neglect the Asian market!