BREAKING NEWS & VIEWS

ESPN, Time and Epi Lead iPhone Hit Parade
Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Brands matter. And when users have 85,000 mobile applications to choose from, brand recognition may matter more than all the viral activity and social recommendations new media can muster. With Apple announcing this week its 2 billionth download from the iPhone/iPod Touch App Store, we reflect on the astonishing resilience of magazine brands atop the most-downloaded programs in the sprawling world of Apple apps.

As many content providers look to mobile for the successful paid models that eluded many of them on the Web, it is important to note that few make it into the top 100, although this is a chart dominated by games. In its first day in the market CNN Mobile raced to the top of the paid apps chart, one of the very rare occasions when a content app has occupied that position. ESPN Radio (#6 among paid apps) was released more than a week ago and remains popular with a $2.99 price tag. The service offers on-demand access to ESPN Radio shows as well as live streams of game play-by-plays.

On-the-go multimedia is apparently very popular with mobile users, as the ESPN Radio app merits an extraordinary 4.5 stars out of 5 among hundreds of users. ESPN scores again in the paid app category with its Fantasy Football app (#38 after three weeks: Rated: 3.5), which lets fantasy league fanatics manage their teams and keep up to date for a flat $4.99 fee.

Among the Top 100 free apps across all categories, magazine brands fare well. Time Mobile is #15 and the second-highest-ranking media brand download this week, right behind ESPN Scorecard (#13: Rated: 3). Epicurious’s “Recipe and Shopping List” tool (#43, Rated: 2.5) suffered 144 one-star votes but also gathered a following. More than 160 users awarded the app four or five stars.

In the News category Time Mobile (#1 in News: Rating: 3) tops the free apps list. Popular Science Media Group’s PopSci app (#13: Rated: 3) earned good traction in its first week of release. BusinessWeek (#15: Rated: 2.5) continues its popularity even a month after initial release and with a modest user rating.

Indeed, brand seems to trump consumer satisfaction. The current ConsumerReports app (#18, Rated: 2) has such limited functionality that it seems to be a placeholder for a more robust offering that we understand Consumer Union is developing. The only print brand to crack the paid content category in News is The Onion’s cleverly designed Microfiche Headline Reader (#11 paid News app; Rating: 2). Which just goes to show that sheer cleverness only goes so far when consumers are ponying up even a trivial 99 cents.

In Finance, CNNMoney (#9 free app: Rated: 2.5) is only slightly more popular than the better-liked Bloomberg (#13 free app: Rated: 3.5).

Of course the popularity of a download is not indicative of overall use. Those are the kinds of metrics we still need in the market.

If you have breaking news to share please contact Steve Smith at ssmith@accessintel.com
Search Jobs
Media Jobs
min Social Networks

Join us on Linkedin
Follow us on Linkedin

White Papers
Get even smarter -- download a white paper today.

Featured White Papers:
All Content is Now Evergreen
By nstein


Making the Move: Tips on How to Create Digitally-Optimized Magazines
By Nxtbook Media Design



... more Whitepapers
min Contests

min contests




To sponsor a min contest in 2010, contact Erica Gottlieb at egottlieb@accessintel.com.

 Reserve your contest in min

min Press

State of Digital MediaThe State of Digital Media

 View Details
                           

Twitter Best Practices for Media CompaniesTwitter Best Practices for Media Companies

 View Details
                           

                                    Internet Sales            Guidebook

 View Details

All min Press

Inside min This Week
Events Calendar

February 16, 2010
min Webinar: How to Monetize Your Video Streams Now
Learn More

February 25, 2010
Managing and Monetizing the Magazine Content Eco-System
Learn More

February 28-3, 2010
4A's Transformation 2010
Learn More

All Events


min
Free Eletters — Sign up Now