Prevalent Business Models for the Apple App Store

Brockmann T, Stieglitz S, Cvetkovic A

Research article in edited proceedings (conference) | Peer reviewed

Abstract

Mobile applications, commonly known as apps, have become a significant line of business for IS commerce. There is an App for that! With this slogan Apple suggests that there is app out there for many uses and indeed for every circumstance within our everyday life. However, there is a lack of knowledge of what business models prevail in successfully developing and capitalizing an app. This paper aims to investigate prevalent business models. For this purpose, approximately 300 successful apps from the Apple App Store were analysed. Moreover, 10 semi-structured interviews were carried out with app developers who have successfully placed an app within the top charts of the Apple App Store. It is notable that content-driven apps entertaining users in combination with a ‘freemium' or ‘in-app' revenue model dominate the Apple app market. App developers clearly define their target group, specify their market cultivation, and try to avoid free apps.

Details about the publication

Statusaccepted / in press (not yet published)
Release year2015
Language in which the publication is writtenEnglish
Conference12th International Conference on Wirtschaftsinformatik, Osnabrück, Germany, undefined

Authors from the University of Münster

Brockmann, Tobias
Research Group Communication and Collaboration Management (KUK)
Stieglitz, Stefan
Research Group Communication and Collaboration Management (KUK)