Anthony Beyer - Mobile Game Developers Prefer iOS
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The document outlines the history and evolution of mobile phones and gaming, highlighting significant milestones such as the launch of the first mobile phone in the 1970s and the introduction of the iPhone in 2007. It discusses the competitive landscape between iOS and Android, noting that while Android has a larger user base, mobile game developers often prefer iOS for its ease of testing and greater spending by users. Overall, despite Android's ubiquity, iOS continues to generate higher revenue from mobile gaming, though trends suggest that this could change in the future.
Anthony Beyer - Mobile Game Developers Prefer iOS
- 2. MOBILE PHONE HISTORY The history of the mobile phone can be traced back to the 1970s, when the first mobile phone call was placed by Martin Cooper, an engineer at Motorola. The phone ( a prototype) was much larger than current devices, was used just for calls, and was equipped with about 30 mins of talk time.
- 3. MOBILE PHONE HISTORY Still, itwasn'tuntiladecade laterthatmobilephones becameavailabletothepublic. Andthesmartphone, IBM's Simondevice, wouldbe another10yearsintheworks, makingitsdebutin1992. The phonewastouchscreenand entailedmorefeaturesthan callingalone.
- 4. GAMING ON PHONES Mobilephonegaming launchedshortlyafterin94, withthearcadefavorite, Tetris, beingthefirsttomakean appearance. In1997, Nokiaintroduceda gameoftheirown, Snake, whichgainedpopularity, and therestishistory.
- 5. IPHONE The iPhone launched in 2007 and changed the smartphone world entirely. It expanded the idea of applications, making them central to the device, and removed keyboard hardware, providing more space onscreen for all activities, including gaming. It became widely successful and the model after which all other competitors would create.
- 6. COMPETITION Almost a year later, Google launched its own device, the G1 on T-Mobile, running a native software similar to and in competition with Apple's popular iPhone. The G1 didn't prove as successful, but the company extended its advanced software with other devices and soon struck gold with its Samsung partnership.
- 7. POPULARITY Presently, 470millioniPhones havebeensolditslaunchandits popularitycontinuestorisewith everynewrelease. Comparatively, Samsung'smost populardevice, theGalaxy, has soldabout200millionphones sinceitslaunchin2010and outsellstheiPhoneattimes.
- 8. OPERATING SYSTEM Nevertheless, when it comes to mobile games, it's less about the hardware and more about how the system operates. iPhone runs its own software entitled iOS, while Google's Android system is run not only on Samsung but on an incredible 1 Billion devices in total, making it significantly more popular than the iOS in terms of market share.
- 9. PREFERENCE FOR IOS Thatsaid, mostgame developerspreferlaunchingon iOS, despiteAndroidlargeuser baseforthefollowingreasons: It'seasiertoconductbeta testingonthefewiPhones whichruniOSvs. the hundredsthatrunAndroid AppdevelopmentforiOSis about30% cheaperthan Android iOSusersspend4xasmuch onappsandbuymoreoften
- 10. WHAT ABOUT ANDROID? According to this article, Android is not left out of the equation entirely. Game developers still want to get their creations into the hands of Android users, but launching on iOS first can help gauge success and determine problems. Subsequently, Android users often experience a better, tested version of a game for free, though it may be premium on iOS.
- 11. FINAL THOUGHTS Android is more ubiquitous with a greater reach than iOS. However, revenue from mobile gaming is significantly higher on iOS and the cost of creating the game is less, thusly, more bang for the buck. Nevertheless, mobile game spending is growing on Android, and if that trend continues and the software becomes more developer friendly, preferences may change.
- 14. FIN