How to make Android Market

For the Russian company i-Free In-no-va-tions, which develops products and services based on mobile technologies, investment in Android and iOS, according to its managing director Kirill Petrov - a matter of survival. Over the past year and a half i-Free Innovations has invested in development for Android more than a million dollars by the end of 2011 plans to invest another $ 2 million, "We can not stay away from large-scale changes in the global mobile market, associated with the emergence of new mobile platforms and technologies ", - says Kiril Petrov. Prospects for androids. Smartphone today - the way the gadget. This year it will be sold in the world nearly 500 million units. Sales of smartphones are growing 4 times faster than the mobile phone market in general. More and more people begin to enjoy convenient mobile services, so the market potential is huge segment. "However, for investors, there are many new risks. In particular, the model of monetization. For example, in the majority of Android products for free, or novelty methods of promotion that you want to find and learn, or global competition - only in the Android Market today more than 300 thousand applications, "- said Kirill Petrov. Managing partner of Runa Capital Dmitry Chihachev notes the reasons why many developers choose Android. First, it is not only the operating system, but also an entire ecosystem that allows distributirovat and monetize applications, collect statistics on the use of services. "Secondly, the devices on the Android platform, on average cheaper than the iPhone, which means that in future it will be more mass market", - said Dmitry Chihachev. The Fund invests Runa Capital itself to the development of software for mobile devices. He made a bid for the project "Telefir" - voice application in a social network for mobile devices based on iOS (iPhone), Android and Java Mobile. "Telefir" can be compared with radio or walkie-talkie, where you can hear and can speak with those around you. In contrast to "Yandex.Probki" information you hear, and see not a mobile device that allows him to not be distracted from the road. Participants can broadcast warning: "Gently, Kosygin to sell striped sticks," to ask for help, "struck the wheel - help change!" - Or the board: "How to avoid a traffic jam at the underground" Falcon "?" An important part of the audience "Telefira" - motorists but, in principle, the project is designed for anyone who is interested in what's going on. Investors expect that Android will be in addition to iOS the leading platform for the tablets, which will further increase the market for applications. "For several years we can expect a boom MIDs, netbooks are superseded. For ease of use and capabilities are superior to smartphones. Applications for Internet tablets will be the next stage of market development ", - said Konstantin Kamenev, managing director of investment holding company" Finam ". The most popular mobile applications - games and mobile versions of popular web-resources. "Today we are focused on several key product categories. This is a successful internet processing models for the mobile environment, the improvement of simple and useful everyday applications, mobile entertainment and other ", - said Kirill Petrov. A few applications developed by i-Free Innovations for Android, already on the "Market" - mainly services for the organization purchases and discounts. Until the end of the year edition is scheduled releases 25-30 more products. Market bubbles. Projects to develop mobile applications are quite different from each other by the degree of risk and potential return. "We can not be hundred percent sure of the success of each project individually. But we want the end of 2012 the average return on total project does not fall below 25% ", - said Kirill Petrov. Runa Capital plans a few years to reinvest profits from the project "Telefir." "By investing in November 2010 in start-up $ 2 million, we anticipate a tenfold increase in the cost of its share of the company in 3-4 years", - says Dmitry Chihachev. However, on the development of applications will be spent only part of the money. More will be spent on product promotion, and to develop the platform, API which will be open to third-party developers who will create their own applications to the "Telefiru." Director of the direction of "Corporate Finance" investment company RMG Securities Arseny Dabbah believes that many current projects in the "hip" direction - the social network or online games - will be a failure, and investors will lose money. "The market for Web-based applications for smartphones is very promising. But it took more investment than a well-developed projects. At the same time on the market for mobile applications, it is a lot of competitors, for which information was not available to others at the time of preparing a business plan, "- said Arseny Dabbah. In his view, the market is satisfied and the investment "bubble" to deflate in 2013, when will the rapid growth of smartphone sales. Chance in the niche. Many investors do not give rest to the success of the popular toys Angry Birds, the number of downloads in the world which has already exceeded 200 million proceeds from the sale of game developers accounted for 56 million euros in initial investment of $ 100 thousand Kirill Petrov says that such stories, when a developer or inexperienced small team to build applications and games that bring millions are not uncommon. Dmitry Chihachev, believes that in the long term impact may be even higher. But in Russia to deliver these outcomes while preventing low penetration of smartphones, poor 3G-coverage, high (40%) commission for micropayments mobile operators with SMS, low propagation rates with unlimited access to the Internet. Greater chances of success are experienced developers which take into account modern trends and create a new game mechanics. "The demand for application depends on the ease of interface, the added value that it gives the user, the built-viralnyh and social mechanisms", - said Kirill Petrov. Arseny Dabbah believes that the main thing - clearly specialize in a particular niche of consumers and understand their needs. Konstantin Kamenev of "Finam" notes that many mobile applications, except for games and mobile versions of popular web-resources, it is difficult to monetize. Besides, most applications (if it is not banking applications, email clients and clients of social networks) is very short lifetime of the device. But you can invest in business applications, a profit from their development is not connected with the product itself, and the proposed service. For example, "Finam" recently presented to its clients trading application - a mobile platform for securities trading on the iPhone and the iPad. Customers liked the application, have started to use, and now plans to release a line similar to the platform for Android. According to Konstantin Kamenev, the average cost of developing client-server applications (not games) depends strongly on the functional and starts from 1.5 million rubles. Such investments "Finam" needed to maintain customer loyalty, and to increase the intensity of its brokerage business. Conclusions. While that Android does not create an exclusive killer application. The most popular applications are cross platform. The advantages of Android - the openness, the platform preferred by those who do not like the closed ecosystem of devices, Apple. Interest in the market for Android applications will be heated directly in proportion to the share of Android-devices in the market. According to experts, startups will have many more, but success will be the one.