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Deloitte: App downloads dwindle, 1 in 3 users disinterested

Demand for smartphone apps is waning as users become more conservative about what they download and older users aren't interested in such apps.

By Ananth Baliga
An iPhone displays the photo-sharing app Instagram in Washington, D.C. on April 9, 2012. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
An iPhone displays the photo-sharing app Instagram in Washington, D.C. on April 9, 2012. UPI/Kevin Dietsch | License Photo

LONDON, Aug. 20 (UPI) -- The number of people downloading apps seems to have reached its peak with the average number of app downloaded a month has declined considerably.

Nearly one in three people in the U.K. do not download a single app in a typical month, according to a report released by research firm Deloitte. Researchers at the firm said that people had found their ideal number of apps, which includes a few social media and music streaming apps.

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"Smartphone users have now found their preferred apps, such as The Times or other news sites, and they will be less inclined to try new things," Paul Lee, an analyst with Deloitte, told the The Australian.

The report also found that nine in ten people did not pay for apps, suggesting that demand for paid apps is waning. Most users have reduced the number of frivolous apps they download on a whim and are being picky about their apps.

Deloitte points out that the app market is not shrinking and numbers are falling because most new smartphone users are over 50 and have less interest in using them.

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"When you look at who uses IM (instant messaging) services like WhatsApp and WeChat, it tends to be younger age groups and it declines very steeply with age," Lee told The Independent.

Having an app gain popularity has become increasingly difficult, but opportunities for apps that do make it are linked to a larger software company. Julien Codorniou, the head of platform and partnerships for Facebook in Europe, said that there are over 100 gaming apps that are making $1 million a year by featuring its apps on Facebook.

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