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May 23, 2013

Mobile Apps Increasingly Popular in 'Emerging Markets'

By Jamie Epstein, TMCnet Web Editor

While it is an increasingly hard task to find someone who doesn’t use some type of application on their smartphone these days, just-released research from Ovum (News - Alert) is highlighting that nearly two-thirds of individuals don’t download apps at all. However, the Consumer Insights Survey reveals that the masses in “emerging markets” are the most gung-ho group of users continuously leveraging tons of applications.



In fact, findings highlight that in China, for example, 91 percent of respondents said they regularly download new applications, followed by India (84 percent) and Brazil (67 percent). Additionally, consumers located in these emerging markets have agreed they are willing to spend the money required for certain higher end applications. Looking at India, 21 percent of respondents spend around $15 each month on application downloads alone.

Eden Zoller, principal analyst at Ovum, commented, “These findings from emerging markets reflect the positive impact that the large and growing middle class, coupled with strong demand from young, urban dwellers in both China and India, are having on the app economy. Even less-affluent users in emerging markets can justify the purchase of an application if it is a key source of information or entertainment.”


Image
via Shutterstock

While mobile applications will likely be used more and more as the days pass as users demand to work from anywhere at any time, these applications are also making their relevance known within the healthcare industry.

According to TMC (News - Alert) Senior Editor Tony Rizzo, “There is no question that with the rapid advancement of mobility - not only in terms of mobile capabilities, but simply in terms of the sheer number of people now willing to invest their time in using the apps - is the future of healthcare, and that future is now upon us. This fast growing uptake of digital health applications on smartphones will radically change the way healthcare is delivered. Accessing health information on mobile devices will soon be the new standard, and health apps will play an increasing and permanent role in this system.”

Want an example of a widely popular healthcare-related app? HealthTegra’s Breast Self Examination (BSE) Aware (News - Alert) app for starters can be downloaded free of charge and will remind women as well as men to check their breasts for any changes or lumps each and every month, allowing them to then log their results.

Over time, apps will only further prove that they can not only provide a plethora of information to users, but they can also be used for entertainment and keeping us healthier.




Edited by Alisen Downey
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