The latest in a series of quarterly developer surveys by analyst firm IDC and mobile platform operator Appcelerator has shown that developers are gradually losing interest in developing games for Google’s Android platform, while the popularity of the iPhone and iPad platforms remains high.
Of the 2,173 developers surveyed, 78.6 per cent showed interest in developing for Android smartphones, which is a 5 per cent drop from the previous quarter. Android is even less popular with devs in the tablet segment, with only 66 per cent showing interest. While a 5 per cent drop may not seem significant, it speaks volumes considering the dramatic rise in the sale of Android devices. Incidentally, it has been reported that Google is pressuring app developers to use its own, costlier payment service Google Wallet as opposed to third party services like Paypal in an attempt to replicate the success of Apple’s App Store, although the company has denied this.
Apple’s iOS remains the mobile developer’s platform of choice, with 89 per cent showing an inclination towards the iPhone, and 88 per cent interested in the iPad. Windows Phone 7 is the third most popular platform, with 37 per cent of devs showing interest; no change since last quarter. Blackberry’s popularity continues to decline, with developer interest dropping from 21 per cent to just 15.5 per cent.
The good news for Google, however, is that in the social space, developers still prefer its network of services over the likes of Facebook. According to the survey, 39 per cent found that Google’s network, which includes Youtube, Gmail, Google Maps and Google+, was more important in their social strategies than Facebook.