A few days ago, Bloomberg Businessweek reported that iAd, which was rolled out in July of this year, will grab an estimated 21 per cent of the mobile-ad market by this year’s end. Chunks are being taken out of Google, which will slip from 27 per cent in 2009 to 21 percent this year, and especially Yahoo!, project to be down to 9 from 12 per cent. However–these are only estimates from IDC. With that $60 million ad-buy commitments from AT&T, Best Buy, Chanel, Walt Disney, and others, there is no question why Steve Jobs had a smile on his face during his June 7th keynote presentation.
One reason I love Apple’s new iAd system, and I may be partial as junior developer, is that it helps developers earn money so they can continue to create free and low-cost apps. This not only increases the amount of apps available for consumers, but also keeps pushing the envelop as far as what mobile applications are capable of.
Nonetheless, the push towards Android development is increasing at a (not-so) alarming rate. From IDC:
Seventy-two percent of developers say Android “is best positioned to power a large number and variety of connected devices in the future.” compared to 25% for iOS. As a result, 59% of developers now favor Android’s long-term outlook versus 35% for iOS. This gap has widened 10 points since a similar survey in June.
But, Apple iOS continues to dominate in all categories relating to market/revenue opportunity and current devices. Who’s ready for Google TV, and the TV application market? I am. Custom TV experience sounds like the next step in awesomeness. I’m getting a bit sick of paying way too much for television channels that I simple never watch. Television needs new and more effective ways to create immersive experiences, properly engage audiences with advertisers, integrate social networks, and drive viewership of original broadcasts. You know, if history has nothing to do with it, something still tells me Apple will be the first to truly dabble in it…and soon.
