Web Applications Generate Greater Usage Stickiness over Time, Survey Reveals

April 21, 2010 - PRLog -- Global Intelligence Alliance (GIA), a global strategic market intelligence and advisory group, releases some findings from a survey on mobile applications, conducted amongst 90 mobile publishers and service providers worldwide.

The survey results show that web applications tend to generate greater usage stickiness over time. Up to 33 percent of publishers with web applications surveyed have experienced steady usage growth as compared to only 22 percent of native application publishers. Direct control over the distribution of an application appears to be a major driver behind web applications and services. Meanwhile, native applications continue to generate the bulk of traffic and usage volumes.

Based on feedback from the survey, the choice over a web or native application interface holds important implications on, or is dictated by, the following launch considerations:

UX design – Native applications are traditionally superior in terms of performance and access to device attributes such as geo-location APIs (application programming interfaces), cameras, address books and accelerometers.

Billing – Web applications or touch-ready mobile sites typically offer greater billing options and allow for open distribution, independent of third-party vendors such as carriers or OEM (original equipment manufacturer) app stores.

Reach – While mobile app stores are said to attract more active users, web apps allow publishers and service providers to serve all smartphone audiences without the compatibility issues that you see with native app distribution.

Return on Investment – The costs of development and updates are generally higher for native apps, but native app stores are said to generate higher returns thanks to the benefits of larger consumer bases and integrated billing for instance.

Go-to-market – Web apps are often quicker to deploy, particularly as they are not subject to distributor approvals that can take from weeks to months of evaluation and QA (quality assurance).

Discoverability – With an influx of new applications into proprietary app stores – there are over already 170,000 apps on Apple App Store and Android alone - it is increasingly hard to generalize whether visibility is higher over web or native interfaces.

User analytics – web apps or web sites generally offer more direct, unfiltered access to user behaviour data, which in turn enables product cross-selling and helps build customer loyalty.

Finally the constant evolution of web (e.g. HTML 5) and device native technologies, complemented by the emergence of cross-device solutions that allow publishers to convert existing web apps into native applications, increasingly blur the lines between web and native in terms of user experience.

Such findings, and more, were discussed at length during the GIA webinar, “Native or Web Application? A Look at How Best to Deliver Content and Services to Your Audience over the Mobile Phone."

The webinar explained:

* Different approaches in building applications for mobile phones;
* Trends that will influence developers' and publishers' interface choices in the future; and
* Wide-ranging implications of web or native applications beyond mobile service, into general consumer electronics such as tablet computers and connected televisions

Webinar presenters included Howard Steinberg, Business Development Director - Mobile from IAC Publishing, Vladimir Katardjiev, Software Architect from Ericsson Research Labs and Lie Luo, Lead Consultant for Mobile and Wireless at Global Intelligence Alliance.

The white paper and webinar recording can be downloaded at www.globalintelligence.com.


For further information, please visit www.globalintelligence.com or send an email to media(at)globalintelligence.com.

# # #

About Global Intelligence Alliance
Global Intelligence Alliance (GIA) is a strategic market intelligence and advisory group. GIA was formed in 1995 when a team of market intelligence specialists, management consultants, industry analysts and technology experts came together to build a powerful suite of customized solutions ranging from outsourced market monitoring services and software, to strategic analysis and advisory.

Today, we are the preferred partner for organizations seeking to understand, compete and grow in international markets. Our industry expertise and coverage of over 100 countries enables our customers to make better informed decisions worldwide.

www.globalintelligence.com