2023: Mobile Usage Surges with Half a Million App Installations per Minute
In the recently released State of Mobile 2024 report by data.ai, five key statistics have come to the forefront, providing a comprehensive snapshot of the mobile landscape. Firstly, a staggering 257 billion app installations occurred in 2023, translating to over 489,000 downloads every minute throughout the year. Secondly, a noteworthy $325,000 was spent per minute, resulting in a cumulative in-app spending figure of $171 billion for the year. The report's third insight highlights a 6% increase in average daily app usage, totaling 5 hours across the top 10 mobile-first markets analyzed. Notably, this equated to a colossal 14 billion hours spent on Android devices daily and an astonishing 5.1 trillion hours throughout 2023.
Moving on, the fourth key finding reveals an 8% year-on-year surge in mobile ad spending, reaching $362 billion. This places mobile advertising spending ahead of the economies of entire countries such as Finland, Colombia, and New Zealand. Lastly, the report emphasizes the pivotal role of non-gaming apps in the mobile industry's success. These apps witnessed a revenue surge, growing 20 times since 2014 and generating an impressive $64 billion in 2023 alone. While gaming apps also experienced growth, particularly in Role-Playing Games (RPGs), non-gaming apps stole the spotlight in terms of revenue.
Lexi Sydow, the Director of Corporate Marketing and Insights at data.ai, encapsulated the report, highlighting the sustained high demand for mobile gaming, significant releases in 2023, and the increasing importance of social elements in mobile gameplay. The broader observations from data.ai touch upon the influence of generative AI, chatbots, and art generators, as well as the growing demand for real-world experiences complemented by mobile devices. Entertainment apps witnessed double-digit growth, exemplified by three trillion hours spent watching content in 2023, showcasing the expanding influence of mobile beyond gaming, particularly in the UK's video market.
Source: adapted from an article by Aaron Astle, News Editor for PocketGamer.biz.