Research in Motion commissioned UK based jobs search site, All The Top Bananas, to build an internal job postings and search app for the BlackBerry named Jobs in Motion. This news by itself is really no news at all. What was, “unexpected”, to say the least, is that All The Top Bananas also built a version of Jobs in Motion for Android devices and it is available in Android Market. I’ve got to admit… I didn’t see this one coming.
Download Jobs in Motion for BlackBerry on BlackBerry App World.
Download Jobs in Motion for Android on Android Market.
Thus far the only way to install an application on the BlackBerry PlayBook is to download it directly from BlackBerry App World. BlackBerry smartphones, on the other hand, can download applications literally from anywhere. This is a huge benefit to developers as they don’t have to abide buy Research in Motion’s rules when it comes to BlackBerry App World, nor do they have to share 30% of their revenue RIM.
There are generally two camps when it comes to installing smartphone applications from places other than their respective application store fronts, or, sideloading, as it is more commonly referred to. There is the BlackBerry smartphone methodology where you simply need to provide the path where the BlackBerry application files can be downloaded from, and, there is the Apple methodology where sideloading requires Jailbreaking your device. In the BlackBerry smartphone install from wherever camp you have Android which gives you an option to install non-Android Market applications (turned off by default). In the Apple install only from App Store camp you have Microsoft where WP7 apps can only be installed from Windows MarketPlace.
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When it comes to app stores for mobile devices, there is no question that Apple’s App Store brings in the most revenue, $1.782 billion dollars in 2010 with 87.2% market share. What you may find interesting, however, is who comes in second place.
Conventional wisdom would tell you Android Market would be in second place, seeing how Android is taking earth by storm when it comes to smartphones, seeing over 350,000 activations per day. RIM’s BlackBerry App World, however, holds claim to the number two spot, and, even as big a BlackBerry fan as I am, I thought to myself, “Seriously?”, when I first heard that stat.
BlackBerry App World currently sits only behind the App Store with $165 million in revenue and 7.7% market share in 2010. BlackBerry App World also grew 360.3% year over year compared to the App Store’s 139.9% growth. RIM is technically gaining on Apple, but, their share is so small in comparison that taking a few points here and there isn’t terribly difficult. Android Market was actually in 4th place over all with 4.7% total share, but, Androids growth was 861.5 % over the previous year. Android Market will catch and surpass RIM relatively quickly if all things remain equal.
[Via CNet]
I was just taking a look at numbers published by mobile analytics firm, Distimo, that outlines Research in Motion’s abysmal performance when it comes to BlackBerry applications as compared to their competitors. The best way to describe the number of applications in BlackBerry App World is to call it a complete and utter embarrassment…
I would even go as far to say that if RIM doesn’t address application support and development on the BlackBerry in a big way this year, you will begin to see the BlackBerry’s gains in total market share begin to turn into losses, especially here in the United States.
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