Mobile application developer survey: network and channel requirements
Device vendors, Internet players, and mobile operators are all vying to be the development platform and distribution partner of choice for mobile application developers. Mobile operators, who have long been courting application developers, have even changed their models to mirror those of successful rival players such as Apple and Google. But while there is a lot of speculation and anecdotal evidence around mobile application developer needs and requirements, there has been little actual data from developers to give a clear picture of how they view the market. Ovum’s first mobile application developer survey provides a view of the trends in this nascent but fast-growing market, based on in-depth interviews with developers.
Executive summary
In a nutshell
Scope
Ovum view
Support for mobile as a platform
Support is strong, but almost one-third of developers are still playing the waiting game
For those developers holding back, mobile is seen as a poor relation to the PC/web
Commercial concerns are also holding developers back from mobile
Mobile device support
Availability of devices and size of installed base are key determining factors
Applications
Enterprise applications are well supported by developers, followed by communications
Application development partners
Mobile developers want partners that make life easy for them
Google the outright winner by far in server-side APIs
Some surprises in the runners up for server-side APIs
Reach dominates channel partner attributes
Apple is the channel partner of choice, but new rivals are quickly catching up
Annex
Methodology
Who did we survey?
In a nutshell
Scope
Ovum view
Support for mobile as a platform
Support is strong, but almost one-third of developers are still playing the waiting game
For those developers holding back, mobile is seen as a poor relation to the PC/web
Commercial concerns are also holding developers back from mobile
Mobile device support
Availability of devices and size of installed base are key determining factors
Applications
Enterprise applications are well supported by developers, followed by communications
Application development partners
Mobile developers want partners that make life easy for them
Google the outright winner by far in server-side APIs
Some surprises in the runners up for server-side APIs
Reach dominates channel partner attributes
Apple is the channel partner of choice, but new rivals are quickly catching up
Annex
Methodology
Who did we survey?
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: Reasons cited for delaying mobile application market entry
Table 2: Rank of factors influencing choice of devices to support
Table 1: Reasons cited for delaying mobile application market entry
Table 2: Rank of factors influencing choice of devices to support
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1: If you are developing/plan to develop, which factors are important in influencing your choice of which devices to support?
Figure 2: Proportion of respondents developing different application types
Figure 3: What are the top ten developer requirements of developer partners?
Figure 4: Preferred partner for network APIs/server-side APIs
Figure 5: Ranking of key attributes important in selecting a channel partner
Figure 6: Channel partners of choice
Figure 7: Number of employees of each company interviewed
Figure 1: If you are developing/plan to develop, which factors are important in influencing your choice of which devices to support?
Figure 2: Proportion of respondents developing different application types
Figure 3: What are the top ten developer requirements of developer partners?
Figure 4: Preferred partner for network APIs/server-side APIs
Figure 5: Ranking of key attributes important in selecting a channel partner
Figure 6: Channel partners of choice
Figure 7: Number of employees of each company interviewed
