Within the last decade, since Apple first launched its Apple App Store, the development of mobile health applications has evolved to a market consisting of more than 325,000 apps across various platforms. However, only a few of these apps will be successful, whereas most of them will become zombies, meaning they are abandoned because very few people have downloaded them.
Despite the fact that the market is already saturated, and it is not possible to know everything about it, growth is not only not decelerating but is really accelerating. Compared to the previous year, there were 78,000 new applications released in the previous year. The trend was especially distinguished in the case of the Google Play Store, which has surpassed its rival, the Apple Store, to become the most important platform for mobile application development services.
According to a consulting organization named research2guidance, the number of apps based on Android has climbed by fifty percent, while the number of apps based on the Apple platform has climbed by twenty percent.
It is unequivocally clear that the supply does not match the demand. The number of mobile health applications downloaded in 2017 is estimated to have reached 3.7 billion, growing 16% compared with the previous year. Compared with the previous year, when the growth rate was merely seven percent, growth has really accelerated; however, the average downloads for every application are quite low.
Consequently, over 55% of all apps make less than 5,000 downloads every year. Only three percent of successful publishers (those with more than one million dollars in revenue and more than five hundred workers) succeed in making more than one million downloads on a yearly basis. Another 21% of developers report that their digital solutions have fewer than 10,000 monthly active users, while 62% of developers report that their digital solutions have fewer than 1,000 monthly active users.
The Saturation of the Market for Mobile Application Development: Why Is It So?
The relatively low use of the majority of apps can be attributed to a great number of factors. One of those factors is market saturation, but another factor that contributes to it is the fact that many of these products are designed without taking into account the requirements of the target audience for which they are intended.
Patients and healthcare professionals often consider digital solutions to be unnecessary or impracticable in daily life, although they are well-designed and more intentional. Due to this, the concept of a Health Hackathon appeared. This event would enable medical professionals, patients, and software developers to co-operate in the development of digital health solutions. The Health Hackathon, which is the most important event in Spanish-speaking countries, will be celebrating its third edition on June 15 and 16 at the National Center for Cardiovascular Research. The event is organized by the communication agency COM Salud in partnership with the Association of eHealth Researchers (AIES).
Primary tendencies in the development of mobile applications for the medical field
According to the experts that Research2guidance discussed with, diabetes, which is one of the concerns that the Health Hackathon is attempting to address, continues to offer the biggest market potential for mHealth solutions in the foreseeable future. This is followed by obesity and depression.
To a certain extent, this concurs with the intentions of application suppliers. Pharmaceutical firms are among the most active in the development of mobile applications in recent years. These companies are focusing on offering digital products and services for medication, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Hospitals, on the other hand, are developing solutions for improving the efficiency of their operations.
Instead, mobile app development services companies specialize in areas such as weight management or mental health. According to the opinions of industry experts, health insurers, which are expected to be the primary app providers in the years to come, are more active than usual in the field of wellness and fitness.
Regarding telehealth companies, they are publishing applications that are associated with connecting with physicians. This is the area in which the greatest supply is concentrated, accounting for thirty percent of the market. Additionally, they are involved in new advancements that are associated with cardiovascular illnesses. Considering that the interest of telecommunications firms in the mobile health industry has waned, these companies are concentrating their efforts on providing digital services that improve hospital efficiency and drug management.
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