App developers still see Apple’s iOS as the platform of choice – but not for long.
While three quarters of developers surveyed by Appcelerator and IDC said Apple was the best platform to write apps for in the near term, 58.6% expect Google’s Android to win out in the long run – 4.6 points more than three months ago.
Almost three quarters of those polled said Android was “best positioned to power a large number and variety of connected devices in the future.” And half said the Google OS had the most capabilities of any mobile operating system.
The report called the results a “window of opportunity” for Android. However, Apple is still where the money is: three quarters claimed developing for the iPhone, iPad and iPod offered the best revenue opportunity, as it has the largest market and the best app store, devices and security.Just a third were interested in creating apps for BlackBerry, while the emerging marketing around Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 helped it gain a few points to 28%. Symbian held the attention of only 13% of developers, while Intel and Nokia’s joint OS MeeGo slid by nearly half to 7%.