As we reported earlier this week, Apple has now distributed more apps (18 billion) than songs (16 billion). However, industry analysis site Asymco has been digging into the respective values of apps and music for Apple’s bottom line. Around 34 million apps are downloaded every day – a mixture of paid and free – while 8.3 million songs are downloaded from iTunes every day (most paid). But with Apple having paid out $3 billion to developers, Asymco is able to calculate the average price of an app, and then the relative money being made by Apple from apps and music. The answer? Around $85 million a month from songs and $75 million a month from apps. “At a billion downloads a month (and rising) the [apps] value in terms of revenues is already a run rate of $2.9 billion per year. This has been enough to overtake a business [music] that has been running for more than seven years,” claims the article. Don’t lose sight of the fact that the value to Apple of apps versus music is less about pure revenues, and much more about what’s selling more hardware. With apps a much bigger factor in selling iPhones, iPod touches and iPads than songs, the App Store arguably superseded the iTunes Store in corporate value to Apple long ago.
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Tools: Kaiber
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