Forecast: 50 billion mobile app downloads in 2012

Mobile application downloads across all handsets worldwide are poised to grow from 7 billion in 2009 to almost 50 billion in 2012--a year-over-year growth rate of 92 percent--according to a new report compiled by consulting firm Chetan Sharma Consulting and commissioned by independent app store GetJar. At current projections, the global mobile apps economy will generate sales of $17.5 billion by 2012, surpassing world music trade organization IFPI's projections for CD sales that same year ($13.83 billion).

Chetan Sharma anticipates that off-deck premium app sales will account for almost half of all application revenues in 2012--on-deck operator app sales, which represented more than 60 percent of apps revenue in 2009, will slip to under 23 percent in 2012. Apps economies are evolving differently according to region: While Asia accounted for 37 percent of worldwide downloads in 2009, North American consumers spent the most money on apps, accounting for over 50 percent of revenue. The average app selling price in North America last year was $1.09, compared to 20 cents in South America and 10 cents in Asia. The report forecasts North American mobile apps revenues will increase from $2.1 billion in 2009 to around $6.7 billion in 2012--European app revenues will jump from $1.5 billion in 2009 to $8.5 billion in 2012.

Chetan Sharma adds that advertising contributed close to 12 percent of overall apps revenue in 2009, a percentage expected to grow to over 28 percent in 2012. At the same time, the average application retail price is expected to shrink about 29 percent from $1.90 in 2009, although the report notes advertising revenue derived from apps will remain relatively flat.

For more on the Chetan Sharma/GetJar report:
- read this release

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