The Asian app-losion: 3 reasons the region will shape the app economy

Photo credit: William Hook

We at App Annie recently released our Forecast 2022 report, in which we projected a 92 percent increase in consumer spend globally over the next five years (from 2017), with downloads poised to grow by 45 percent from just last year to this year alone.

Asia Pacific, which already drives two-thirds of global spend, is poised to build on its dominance, with continued growth in markets that are in both mature and experimentation phases.

The region’s emerging economies, such as Indonesia, Vietnam, and India, will continue to experience a surge in downloads, as users gain access to smartphones.

Meanwhile, more mature markets such as Japan and South Korea will see rapid growth in consumer spend as they move into a phase of app maturity. In-app spending will continue to increase in these markets, and app developers will simultaneously get better at monetization strategies.

It’s easy to see why Asia will be the key driver; countries in the region are topping both download and consumer spend numbers.

Here are three reasons why you can look forward to more APAC-targeted apps.

1. APAC’s emerging markets will lead by app downloads through 2022

When it comes to app download numbers, China will remain the largest market globally. The country’s annual download numbers are set to grow from 79.3 billion in 2017 to 119.5 billion in 2022 (an increase of 51 percent). This is the result of a dramatic increase in first-time smartphone buyers in China, primarily in rural areas.

This pattern is mirrored across other emerging markets. India, for instance, is poised to experience a 208 percent increase in download numbers from 2017 to 2022, the quickest growth rate among top markets.

Users in these emerging markets will drive the growth in the global smartphone base, which will increase from 3.9 billion devices in 2017 to 6.1 billion in 2022.

Growth in downloads is a key characteristic of markets in the experimentation phase. This is buoyed by increased access to affordable Android devices and the expansion of subsidized 4G access.

Markets such as India, Indonesia, and Vietnam, as well as tier 3+ and rural cities in China, will continue to remain deep in the experimentation phase. This will result in a projected increase of 10.3 percent in the compound annual growth rate for the APAC region.

2. Consumer spend in mature markets will almost double, with China at the top

3. APAC’s monopoly over gaming apps will continue through 2022

Methodology