The App Store might have just racked up its 10 billionth download, but the vast majority of those apps have only been given the most cursory examination by users: in fact, according to analytics firm Localytics, 26% of all apps are only used once after they are downloaded.
Localytics’ findings aren’t specific to iOS: they studied thousands of apps across the Android, BlackBerry, iOS and Windows Phone 7 platforms. Across the board, though, one-time use was on the rise in 2010, making it more important than ever for app developers to make that first impression count.
John Brownlee is a writer for Fast Company, and a contributing writer here at CoM. He has also written for Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, VentureBeat, and Gizmodo. He lives in Boston with his wife and two parakeets. You can follow him here on Twitter.
