Apps downloads for the month of January show that the Google Play store from Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) gained another point of market share in the two-company battle with the App Store from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL). Google Play now claims 38% of the market between the two players, up from 37% in December and 35% in August 2013. The Appstore from Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) is not yet included in the data reported by research firm Distimo.
Looking at revenue generating apps, of the five most popular apps at Google Play four are either productivity, personalization, or music player apps. Minecraft – Pocket Edition is the only game in the top five paid apps at Google’s store.
The App Store and Amazon’s Appstore also boast the only paid games in their respective top five from publicly traded companies: Heads Up! from the Warner Bros. division of Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) at the App Store and Scribblenauts Remix, also from Warner Bros., at the Appstore. Temple Run: Oz, from The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) is the fourth most popular paid app at the Appstore.
Facebook Incl. (NASDAQ: FB) supplies two of the top five free apps at Google Play: Facebook and Facebook Messenger. The only free game in the top five at Google play is Candy Crush Saga, which has fallen out of the top five at the App Store. Pac-Man, normally a paid app, was available free for one week in January and resulted in the game vaulting to fourth in free apps available from the App Store.
Combined revenues at the App Store and Google Play rose by 1% in January compared with December 2013 revenues. Since August App Store revenues have risen by 27% while revenues at Google Play have risen by 44%.
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