Apple iOS Developers Found To Be In Better Position Than Android Due To App Piracy

According to a study conducted by Yankee Group and Skyhook, Apple users download six times more paid apps than Android users do, this indicative of a much more lucrative position for developers creating applications for Apple products exclusively. This study published today found that users in the USA download approximately 40 apps per user per year. This study also showed that Android developers make "much less" money from the sales of paid apps than Apple iOS developers, a further study of 75 Android developers showing "rampant piracy" of Android apps as the main reason why.

As Yankee Group and Skyhook note, several findings point toward a more positive developer world for iOS-based workers than Android-based workers, including first of all, of the 75 Android developers questioned, 27 percent saw piracy as a "huge problem" while another 26 percent saw piracy as "somewhat of a problem". These same 75 developers were questioned on the situation further regarding Google's involvement.

Of the 75 Android developers questioned, fifty-three percent said that Google is "too lax" on its Android Market policies. Approximately one third of the Android developers questioned said that piracy has cost them "in excess of $10,000 in revenue". In addition to this, thirty-two percent say piracy "increases their support costs" while another quarter have said that they "see increased server costs due to heavy loads imposed by pirated copies."

Yankee Group director of research Carl Howe noted the following on the situation:

"With five other major mobile OSs competing for consumer dollars, Google can't afford to simply let pirates kill app developers' businesses. They need to foster some law and order or developers will flee to other platforms and Android will lose customers." – Howe

Carl Howe is also the author of a report by the name of "Android Piracy: How Republished Apps Steal Revenue and Increase Costs."

What do you think? Are you an Android app developer experiencing these problems for yourself? How often to you find yourself fighting pirates?

[via Market Watch]