China leads surge in video streaming apps

Video streaming apps have seen a significant increase in popularity across the globe, driving the entertainment' iOS category to number four by revenue worldwide. China comes out as the top country by iOS downloads across all categories, according to the latest report from App Annie which examines the app market globally over the last three months.

Google Play downloads are 85 per cent ahead of iOS thanks to low cost Android smartphone ownership increasing in emerging markets, especially Brazil. Smartphone penetration remains below 30 per cent in such markets, which also include countries like Vietnam, India and the Philippines, meaning there is still significant room for growth for the Android platform.

After China, the top countries by iOS downloads are the United States, Japan, the UK and Russia. The US comes out as the top country by iOS download revenue, followed by Japan, China, the UK and Australia.

Video streaming apps HBO NOW and Hulu led revenue growth in the US, while in China, huge growth over the last quarter has been driven by the popularity of Youku, iGIYI and Tencent Video. These apps offer a range of content, including user-submitted videos, movies, popular regional TV shows like The Voice of China, international series including Game of Thrones, and even original programming. They have also secured broadcasting rights for live sports from international leagues like the NBA.

iQIYI recently announced that the company's paid streaming service hit five million subscribers, an increase of 765 per cent over the previous year. Meanwhile, during its fiscal fourth quarter results announcement, Youku revealed that its daily video views eclipsed 900 million and consumer revenues from subscription and pay per view grew 649 per cent year over year. Alibaba is set to release Tmall Box Office (TBO), a subscription-based streaming service, which is predicted to expand the market even further.

The social networking category dominated time spent per user on iOS devices in the United States, while the entertainment and music categories held a significant lead over others in session duration. Time spent on apps on Android devices in the United States continued to be dominated by social and communication apps.

Photo and video, and entertainment were the second and third top categories by download via the iOS App Store, however, entertainment slumped to fifth place when examining downloads from Google Play in the same quarter. In the top categories by revenue, entertainment moved up one position compared with Q1 2015, ranking fourth in iOS App Store downloads, and fifth in Google Play. Games remain the top category by both download and revenue, in both iOS and Google Play rankings.

www.appannie.com

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