A new study has found that fifty seven percent of apps currently available on the Google Android Market are free, while forty three percent are paid.
The study, which was released by the mobile market data analysis company Distimo, is good news for Google who is waging a very public war on Apple's iOS. According to the same study iOS only offers twenty eight percent of its apps free to customers.
Google has been a very outspoken advocate of offering software that is free and open, and the above data can speak to that.
Here ares some other interesting facts from the report:
- More than 50% of applications are priced below or equal to $2.00 in all stores, with the exception of BlackBerry App World and Windows Marketplace for Mobile.
- The average price of all paid applications and the 100 most popular paid applications in the Apple App Store for iPad ($4.65) is higher than in the Apple App Store for iPhone ($4.01). However, the average price of the 100 top grossing applications is higher on the Apple App Store for iPhone.
- Google Android Market has the largest share of free applications (57%) and Windows Marketplace for Mobile has the smallest (22%).
- Twitter, Inc. published their native application in the Apple App Store and Google Android Market, becoming the monthly number 10 free application in the Apple App Store for iPhone, and the number 6 free application in Google Android Market.
- Nine out of the ten most popular free applications and eight out of ten most popular paid applications in the Apple App Store for iPhone are games.
- In the competitive e-reader market, both the iBooks application by Apple, Inc., and the Kindle application by Amazon.com are ranked among the 10 most popular free applications in the Apple App Store for iPad. Apple’s application is ranked number one however,and Amazon’s application is ranked number ten.
- Five out of the ten most popular free applications in Windows Marketplace for Mobile are published by Microsoft Corporation
