According to research firm Nielsen, Facebook is once again the number one app installed on U.S. smartphones. The app has 126,702,000 average unique users, while YouTube only has 97,627,000 users, granting it a firm second place. These apps do show an increased number of users each year, but it is the Facebook Messenger app that has the highest year-over-year growth of 31%.
On the other hand, Google manages to secure the fourth to seventh positions with Google Search, Google Play, Google Maps, and Gmail respectively. Instagram takes eighth place with 55,413,000 average unique users, with Apple Music and Maps (Apple) trailing closely behind.
Nielsen obtains its data by installing its Electronic Mobile Measurement tool on approximately 9,000 panelist smartphones on both iOS and Android. These panelists are aged 18 and above, recruited online in English from various cultures.
In the same report, Nielsen also found that smartphone penetration in the U.S. grew to 80% of mobile subscribers at the end of September, compared to the 78% during the start of this year. The report also highlighted that U.S. customers preferred Android (52.6%) more than iOS (42.7%). It was found that the remaining 2.8% of mobile phone users accessed Facebook on a Windows phone, while 0.7% used a Blackberry device.
It is interesting to note that the top 10 apps are all owned by only three companies; no surprises who they are: Facebook, Google and Apple. With their portfolio of apps ranging from chat services, video streaming and search, it would hardly be surprising if a top 20 list of apps include more apps owned by these giants.
(Source: Nielsen)
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