App developers must not ignore previous generation phones
IT development teams building mobile apps for smartphones could be missing the opportunity to engage with a huge number of customers by ignoring previous generations of phones.
‘Feature phones’, which were the norm until the iPhone ushered in the age of the smartphone, are still the clear marketshare leaders, driving a mobile apps market set to double according to Ovum.
Although smartphone adoption is growing at a furious rate, the analyst says that by 2016 there will be 2.3 billion feature phones in circulation, commanding a 63 per cent market share. This continued presence has led Ovum to predict that feature phone apps will be worth $1 billion.
Yet despite this penetration, the clamour for smartphone development means that competition will be reduced, meaning the feature phone market could prove to be more lucrative space to develop.
The preferred platform will be JavaME, followed by Opera Mini widgets and Nokia widgets. HTML5, which Ovum says will feature on the majority of phones within the next 18 months, is also a solid development option.