Latin American Android developers increasingly cashing in
The number of Android app developers turning a profit in Latin America is trending higher, fueled by soaring smartphone penetration and increasing demand for delivery services and games, says Google Play.
Google Play has recorded over 8bn installs per month globally this year, including 1bn from Latin American users, and revenue from app subscriptions in the region has increased 180% so far in 2018, while Brazil has outperformed with 220% growth.
Patricia Correa, global director of developer marketing at Google Play, said that, along with Brazil, the Argentine and Mexican markets have been standing out in terms of Android apps development.
"The size and the number of users in these countries explains it. In the case of Argentina, it's also interesting to notice the creativity and the fervent scene of local developers," said the executive. "I like saying Argentina is for LatAm what Israel is for its region."
Correa spoke to BNamericas and other reporters at Google Playtime LatAm in São Paulo, the company's biggest event for developers in region, which was attended by over 300 developers. The company said the number of developers making at least US$300,000 per month on Google Play in Latin America grew more than 60% in the last 12 months, and doubled in Brazil alone.
One hindrance for the region's apps ecosystem is storage. Google found that the main reason for the uninstalling of apps is lack of storage space on the phones.
According to the company, 40% of smartphones or tablets in Latin America have less than 1 GB of free memory for apps. Even in developed countries, one fifth of mobile phones have less than 1 GB of free storage.
Because of that, Correa said that Google is training local developers to develop lighter apps and to use the Play Academy dashboard for app creation. A version in Spanish and Portuguese will be launched in Latin America by December.
TOP-UPS
In 2015, Google launched Recarga Pay in Brazil, a service similar to a mobile prepaid card, in which the user can buy credits of 15 to 100 reais (US$4-27) to the Google Play account for use in apps.
The Recarga service was launched only in Brazil and according to Correa it is now available with over 200,000 merchants and sellers. Currently, over 1mn Brazilian users use it to pay for apps in the Google Play store.
TELCOS
Google has also been partnering with telecoms operators to bill app payments, including in-app purchases, directly on the users' phone bill, a model known as direct-carrier billing.
In Latin America, the company has such agreements with América Móvil in Mexico and in Peru (Claro); AT&T in Mexico and Entel in Chile. It is in negotiations with operators in other countries, including Claro Brasil, said Correa.
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