Android Marketplace Suffers As Analysts Say Most Users Are Cheapskates

The head of Google Music, Jamie Rosenberg will soon be taking over as the head of Google’s Android software market, a post previously held by Eric Chu. One of the main reasons which have been cited for this move is the dwindling sales of apps through the Android Marketplace.

The poor sales on the Android Marketplace have resulted in the irritation of the app developers while also causing much embarrassment to the company. Very recently, Mika Mobile has announced that it would be withdrawing support for Android devices soon. However the crux of the problem does not lie in the internal structuring of the company but the customer base at which the Android Marketplace is directed. The internal structuring of the company is to be blamed too, says Kim-Mai Cutler of TechCrunch who says that having different people in charge of product management and business development and developer relations resulted in a conflicting management structure.

Google is not the preferred destination for most app developers who choose to bring their products first to Apple’s iOS platform. One of the major reasons for this is multitude of devices that an app needs to be compatible with, which makes writing and supporting applications for Android very difficult.

The biggest contributing factor for Google which has resulted in low income from the Android Marketplace is that most of the users choose to download the free apps on the market instead of picking the paid ones. Lower price has been the USP for most of the Android hardware manufactures in their battle against the iPhones and the iPads. This invariably implies that those who do end up purchasing Android powered devices would usually be cost sensitive consumers who are likely to prefer free aps over paid apps.

Apple products which are known to be pricy generally tend to attract people that are comparatively less price sensitive; as a result customers are usually more likely to prefer paid apps over free apps. This could prove to be a huge issue for Google in the long run as Apple gradually cements its position as a high end maker of tablets and smartphones thereby cutting into profit margins of other companies and platforms. This will in turn push the makers of Android devices into developing price centric devices.