The total number of applications available from the App Store decreased in 2017 for the first time in the history of the market, according to the analysis company Appfigures. IOS apps on the App Store were reduced to 2.1 million in the course of 2017, after starting the year at 2.2 million.
The decline can be attributed in part to Apple's decision in 2016 to remove older apps that were no longer compatible with iPhones and newer apps that do not meet recent review guidelines. Applications that were not based on 64-bit architecture were removed.
To add to the cemetery of dead mobile software, Apple also removed virus detection applications, applications that were clones of other applications and other applications. low-quality applications that were cramming the App Store. Simultaneously, developers also presented fewer iOS apps in 2017 compared to 2016, the data shows.
Google Play, on the other hand, has outperformed Apple's app store since 2012, but 2017 marked the biggest gap between the two platforms. Google Play broke 1.5 million in new applications launches, while Apple staggered in 755,000 applications launched in 2017. Appfigures said that part of that was because many developers released Android versions of their iOS applications, but not to backwards, since iOS is still a preferred debut platform.