Although Apple’s iOS is still more popular among developers, Google’s Android and Microsoft’s Windows Phone platforms are already on its heels, according to the latest survey of developers hosting apps on GetJar, a cross-platform app store.
Among the 300 developers surveyed, 80% are currently working on projects for the iPhone, 59% are developing products for the iPad, while only 51.2% are creating applications for Android-based smartphones, and 20.5% are working on Android tablets. The developers were also asked which platforms they are going to create applications for in six months. The survey showed that 58% of developers plan to take up applications for Android-based smartphones. Another 47% would like to create apps for Android tablets. And only 55.6% and 52% are ready to design applications for iPhone and iPad, respectively.
Interest in Windows Phone is also growing due to the imminent appearance of version 7.1 (known as Mango). By the end of the year, 24% of GetJar respondents are ready to work with Windows Phone. Note that currently only 9% of developers create applications for Microsoft. In addition, 70% of respondents are confident that Windows Phone will be a stable platform in the next 5 years. Trust in iOS and Android is 98% for each.
The forecasts for the BlackBerry platform of Research In Motion do not look so optimistic: in the next six months, no more than 15% of respondents are ready to develop for Blackberry. More than half of respondents are not sure about the viability of this OS. But the darkest prospects, according to the survey, await Symbian. Less than 7% of respondents plan to work with this OS, and more than 80% believe that it will not stay on the market for a long time.
About 80% of respondents place their products on the Apple App Store, while Google Android Market is preferred by only 45%, although in the near future this number may increase to 70%.
Trust in the Android app store on Amazon.com increased from 11% to 34%, and interest in distribution through GetJar increased from 11% to 16%.