Free apps are estimated to account for 89 percent of the total downloads in the mobile app market this year, the US-based research firm Gartner Inc said yesterday.
The figure shows that out of the 45.6 billion total downloads, about 40.6 billion were free, said Gartner, which also predicted that the figure will have risen to 93 percent by 2016.
Meanwhile, apps priced between US$0.99 and US$2.99 are likely to account for approximately 87.5 percent of total paid downloads this year and are expected to climb to 96 percent in 2016.
Gartner research director Sandy Shen (沈哲怡) said that like free apps, low-priced apps will garner large-scale downloads.
In related news, sales of mobile communication products in Taiwan for the second quarter of this year jumped 46 percent from a year earlier, according to a report released yesterday by market researcher GfK Group.
GfK Taiwan said strong sales of Android-based smartphones, which accounted for more than 50 percent of the cellphones sold in June, were the major force driving growth in the mobile communications sector.
The report also showed sales of tablet computers in the second quarter jumped 103 percent from a year earlier.
In contrast, laptop sales were down from a year earlier, despite reduced pricing for the new Ultrabooks, it said.
The Fair Trade Commission’s (FTC) ongoing review of Grab Holdings Ltd’s US$600 million acquisition of Foodpanda Taiwan’s operations, announced on March 23, has taken on fresh urgency as industry experts warn that the transaction could embed significant Chinese cybersecurity vulnerabilities into Taiwan’s digital infrastructure through Grab’s deep ties to autonomous-driving firm WeRide (文遠知行). Less than 16 months after the FTC blocked Uber Eats’ direct attempt to acquire Foodpanda Taiwan — citing potential combined market shares of 80 to 90 percent — the emergence of Grab as the buyer has prompted questions about whether the same competitive harm is simply being rerouted
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IMAGE SENSORS: The Japanese company would be the controlling shareholder of the venture, with development and production lines to be set up in Kumamoto Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday said it has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Sony Semiconductor Solutions Corp to create a joint venture to develop and produce next-generation images sensors. The partnership seeks to explore and address emerging opportunities in physical artificial intelligence (AI) applications, such as automotive and robotics, paving the way for innovations and expanded technological advancements, TSMC said in a statement. Sony would be the majority and controlling shareholder of the joint venture, the statement said, adding that the company would set up development and production lines in its newly constructed fab in Kumamoto Prefecture’s
The nation’s foreign exchange reserves climbed back above US$600 billion at the end of last month, as investment gains, currency valuation effects and renewed foreign inflows offset volatility seen earlier in the month, the central bank said yesterday. Reserves stood at US$602.49 billion, up US$5.6 billion from the previous month, the central bank said. The rebound reflected returns on reserve assets, fluctuations in major currencies against the US dollar and the central bank’s market operations aimed at maintaining orderly trading conditions, Department of Foreign Exchange Director-General Eugene Tsai (蔡炯民) said. Financial markets were volatile early last month, with foreign investors recording net purchases
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