Digital Editions On An iPhone, iPad Or Android? Mobile Web Will Win Over Apps, Study Says

Apps built specifically for iPhone, Android, or any other mobile platform will die, according to mobile search company Taptu. The firm released a comprehensive report the future of the mobile content will be dominated in the long run by cross-platform browser-based web sites – rather than apps built specific devices. showing that Taptu found that there are already more mobile touch web sites than mobile touch apps. The company reviewed 326,000 mobile sites, compared to approximately 148,000 apps. “It’s getting easier and easier to create rich touch screen user experiences with the browser based applications without having to create platform-specific apps (publishing software)”, says Steve Ives, CEO of Taptu. “By the end of 2010, we forecast that the mobile touch web will have grown to more than 500,00 sites, and to one million sites by the end of 2011 (…) The economics of software development and publishing favors the Web development route.” Here’s the data:

Other key findings:

• Smartphones and mobile PC aircards will drive over 90% of global mobile traffic by 2014.
• Creating digital editions optimized for mobiles allows businesses to reach a wide audience of consumers across multiple mobile platforms.
• Today there are already more mobile web sites than mobile apps.
• Even digital publishers are seeing the benefits and developing web-based apps for the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Android and other touch screened devices.