Apps more valuable than Hollywood movies: analyst

The ‘app economy’ now makes as much money as Hollywood, according to Asymco analyst Horace Dediu.

Apple recently announced App Store billings had generated over $US10 billion ($12.5 billion) in revenue for developers, while Hollywood also took $US10 billion in box office revenues.

Dediu said while the $10 billion figure is just the US box office, and does not represent the complete Hollywood revenue picture, Apple’s App Store billings do not represent the entire app economy either. That would also include revenue from Android, advertising, service businesses and custom development.

“Including all revenues, apps are still likely to be bigger than Hollywood,” Dediu said.

“But there’s more to the story. It’s also likely that the app industry is healthier.”

“On an individual level, some app developers earn more than Hollywood stars and I would guess the median income of app developers is higher than the median income of actors. The app economy sustains more jobs (627,000 iOS jobs vs 374,000 in Hollywood) and is easier to enter and has wider reach,” Dediu said.

“The curious thing is that even though the medium of apps is swamping other forms of entertainment in all measurable ways, comprehension of the phenomenon is lagging.”