This article is from the WeChat public account: Bullet Finance (ID: wwwhygc) , author: Xu Yun, the subject map from: IC photo
“Flashing? Jailbreak? It’s been a long time since I heard these two words. Mobile phones are generally not needed anymore, right?” Fang Xingcheng, 26, said in surprise.
Fang Xingcheng first came into contact with the brush machine from his first smartphone, Motorola ME525. “At that time, my friends around all started using smartphones, but I did n’t buy them at home. I worked in a hotel for two months as a summer vacation and spent more than 2,000 yuan. Later, the system crashed and I brushed the machine several times, but in the end Broken, “he told Bullet Finance.
Like the decline of Motorola mobile phones in China, the rise of the smartphone era, third-party application stores that provide users with flashing, “jailbreaking”, application downloading, etc., are also becoming history.
On February 28th, the pea pod PC version and PP assistant iOS version were officially offline. Earlier on the evening of February 17, Baidu’s mobile assistant developer announced that the 91 assistant and the Android market were offline.
Those third-party app stores, once known to everyone in the digital world, are leaving the scene intensively. This has once again sparked heated discussions in the industry about whether there is a future for third-party app stores. Perhaps their departure foreshadowed a The times are coming to an end.
As a practitioner, Chairman Guo Peng of Aiyouyou has a clear understanding of the industry: “Third-party stores no longer have the appeal to users.”
“We see whether a product has a future, in fact, it depends on the stickiness of the product to the user, whether it can continue to increase the user’s stay time in the product. The product will ultimately be realized through advertising. The stay time determines the success or failure of the product. Guo Peng said to “Bullet Finance”.
It is worth noting that apart from the exiters, there are stillApplication treasure, 360 mobile assistant and many smaller third-party application stores including Aiyouyou are insisting.
Is there a future for third-party app stores? For the people in the game, it is obviously a question of benevolence and wisdom, and they are acting according to their own choices.
I. Nuggets
Is the app store a good business? The answer is yes.
According to media reports, in 2019, Apple App Store sales reached 54.2 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 16.3% year-on-year, and the estimated profit was about 15 billion U.S. dollars; while Android users in the Google Apps market spent 29.3 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 18.1% year-on-year .
In China, app stores have attracted many big players including Internet giants and head mobile phone manufacturers to enter the Nuggets. However, the early development of China’s app stores is still dominated by small players.
In the battle of mobile phone operating systems, Apple iOS and Google Android stand out, forming a market structure of bipolar hegemony. In the early days of iOS and Android entering China, the lack of localization indirectly contributed to the prosperity of third-party application stores.
In the early App Store, downloading applications was cumbersome and the prices of the applications were expensive, which created a need for users to “jailbreak” to download free applications. On the Android side, a large number of applications need to be installed through third-party channels. The early Android system was not complete and stable, which also required users to keep their phones running smoothly by flashing their phones.
Jailbreak and Root operation It is to crack the highest permission of the mobile phone to install third-party applications or perform operations that cannot be performed by the native system.
“Google ’s openness to Android has enabled service support for the third-party application market, and the inability of Google Play to enter China has also brought opportunities for the rise of the third-party market.” Zhang Yujuan, deputy general manager of the effect marketing department of Youmi Technology Bullet Finance concludes.
In this context, third-party app stores such as Pea Pod, Anzhi Market, App Exchange, and Aisi Assistant have emerged. Users can download and install free applications through these platforms, and can also complete materials such as photos, music, and documents. Synchronization on mobile phones and computers.
(Photo / Photonet, based on VRF protocol)
Internet giants saw the huge opportunity hidden in the traffic entrance and ran into the field.
Baidu spends 1.9 billion US dollars to acquire 91 assistants and 91 wireless company, the parent company of Android market, and form a “three-legged stand” with Baidu mobile assistants; Alibaba has PP assistants, pea pods, UC application stores and Taobao mobile assistants; etc It has application treasure; 360 has 360 mobile assistants …
For many years, third-party app stores have matured profit models.
According to Zhang Yujuan’s observation, the current profit methods of third-party app stores are advertising and intermodal transportation. Among them, the position of the advertisement is mainly CPT (pay according to the length of time) Hard Canton, marketing activities and CPD (Charge by the day) promotion, etc .; Intermodal provides mainstream locations for products with good recycling capabilities. (such as games) for promotion, and CP (content provider) for in-app purchases.
In addition, there are also third-party stores that will cooperate with the advertising platform to recommend embedded applications for monetization, so as to obtain some advertising shares.
Second, “dictator”
The days of third-party app stores are now passing.
With the mobile phone operating systemThe system has become more complete, more pre-installed software, cloud backups have made it easier to store data, the advancement of software genuineness, the awakening of users’ copyright awareness, and the decline in software prices … User habits are quietly changing. Demand is getting smaller and smaller.
In addition to the diversion of user attention, third-party application stores also have homogeneous competition problems, and have been impacted by external competitors, mobile phone manufacturers’ own application stores.
On the iOS side, Apple ’s own App Store is in a monopoly position. On the Android side, major mobile phone manufacturers such as Huami OV also have their own application stores and block third-party application stores.
In the opinion of Nail Technology commentator Guo Jianhui, mobile phone manufacturers’ own app stores come with their own purchases, which do not require installation, are easy to use, and efficiently connect users. In terms of experience, the third-party application stores are increasingly less practical than others, but the mobile application stores have been strengthening their advantages, expanding the number of resources, and limiting the permissions of third-party stores.
Zhang Yujuan also holds the same view. “Mobile phone manufacturers through function adjustments, such as restricting users to install applications through third-party channels, have caused third-party application stores to get less and less traffic. At the same time, mobile phone functions have been continuously improved. Optimization has also made the auxiliary functions originally provided by third-party application stores a breeze.
From the “2018-2019 China Mobile Application Store Market Monitoring Report” by Ai Media Consulting, the application store is already the world of giants, but the status of mobile phone manufacturers cannot be ignored.
In 2018, in the mobile phone manufacturer’s application store, Apple ranked first, and Huami OV belonged to the second gradient. In the third-party application store, 360 mobile assistants and application treasures occupied the first gradient. Baidu ’s Baidu mobile assistant, The PP assistant is at the same second gradient.
(Picture / Ai Media Consulting Report)
In addition, the AI Media Consulting report shows that in 2018, there were 4.72 active users of third-party mobile app stores in China.Billion people.
Among them, users who prefer to use 360 mobile assistant accounted for 40.3%; followed by application treasure, accounting for 24.4%; Baidu mobile assistant accounted for the third place with 19.5%; Ali application distribution accounted for 11.1%. Only 4.6% of users choose other third-party app stores.
(Picture / Ai Media Consulting Report)
Currently, smart phones have not been developed for more than ten years, but the market has undergone dramatic changes. The third-party application market, which relies on smartphones, has also been iterated several times, from a hundred flowers to a giant, and the pattern has changed dramatically.
Three leavers
However, the giants that once occupied the forefront of the market also began to shrink the front.
For the offline of 91 assistant, Android market, pea pod PC version and PP assistant iOS version, the industry is not surprised. After all, before them, many once-lost third-party app stores have fallen.
“The third-party app store is a backward product form,” Guo Peng bluntly told “Bullet Finance”, “The third-party mobile app store does not have obvious competitive differentiation, and the purpose of users using the app store is very clear. , ‘Go now and go’, there will be no product stickiness. “
Zhang Yujuan believes that the emergence of the third-party application market stems from the user needs of the early rise of Android, but this type of user needs will eventually be recognized by mobile phone manufacturers ( (Hardcore Alliance) To address and solve, mobile phone manufacturers take advantage of first-hand user resources and the authority of hardware providers, which is impossible for the third-party application market. Secondly, the rise of applets and fast applications has also impacted the format of the App.
“Unless there is a better opportunity for transformation or a strong‘ streamMeasure daddy ’for support, such as the application Bao has Tencent support. Otherwise, going offline is the general trend. “Zhang Yujuan told Bullet Finance.
However, although the PP assistant has been offline for the iOS and PC versions, it still retains the Android version; the pea pod is offline for the PC version, and the mobile terminal has also been retained, and it has not been completely cut off from the application market.
(Picture / PP Assistant’s official website)
Guo Peng bluntly said: “Affected by the advancement of mobile phone technology, mobile phone stores and WeChat mini programs, the PC version of the store is bound to be eliminated.”
In Zhang Yujuan ’s view, the reason for this difference is that users can easily download and manage applications through mobile phone software, and there are fewer and fewer PC application scenarios; the second is because the PP assistant iOS version, The pod PC version belongs to Ali, and Ali has established his own powerful distribution channel.
“The Android version and mobile terminal may be reserved for the next transformation, such as the community, or to provide other services besides distribution. The mobile terminal still retains the connection with the user.” Zhang Yujuan said.
“In simple terms, it is actually a cost-effective choice, wherever there are developers and users, there are.” Guo Jianhui concluded “Bullet Finance”.
The third-party application market does not develop in isolation. Their offline will also bring a chain reaction to advertising.
Zhang Yujuan believes that the (delisted by third-party application stores) makes the management of the application market more centralized and standardized. When the audit rules are more standardized, the submission of certain products will be limited, but it will increase the proportion of high-quality applications in the market. Such restrictions may also affect the monetization of ads within apps, and third-party ad platforms that provide ad inventory for apps may be challenged.
“In addition, advertisers will focus on budgeting for auctions in mainstream markets. Users’ attention will be increased in the mainstream market, and advertisers will use CPD (Pay per download) , ASO (App Store Optimization) to optimize the target product ’s ranking in the app market To attract more users to download. “Zhang Yu Juan said.
Four Holders
In this market, when someone leaves the market, someone sticks. In addition to the “BAT3” (Baidu, Ali, Tencent, 360) and other giants, in the third-party app store market, there are still Small players stand firm. And these retained third-party app stores have their own ways of survival.
“Aikuyou pushes the App from the computer to the user’s mobile phone through the high-frequency scene of Internet cafe users charging. Thanks to the user’s authorization, it can offset the technical shielding and malicious competition of the built-in application store to the greatest extent.” Guo Peng told “Bullet Finance”.
“The users of the Aikuyou App Store service are Internet cafe users. This group is mainly a group of post-90s college students. They are very sensitive to the freshness and popularity of the application. Because college students like to play games, watch videos and watch videos. Shopping, Ikuyou docking advertisers in these categories made huge gains. ”Guo Peng told“ Bullet Finance ”that Aikoyou ’s cost of acquiring app store users is 0.3 yuan, and each user can contribute more than 2 yuan per year. Compound growth rate exceeds 50%.
(Picture / Timothy-GameCommunity)
Now, there are also some third-party application stores that are transforming and provide functions other than software downloads.
For example, in the Kuan market, a large number of geek-oriented applications were listed in the early days, and a number of digital enthusiast users have been accumulated. Now they are gradually transforming into communities. For another example, Apple-like third-party software such as Aisi Assistant and Hourglass Assistant, in addition to providing application store software, also provides inspection, flashing and purchasing machines ) and other services.
“The challenges to third-party app stores are foreseeable, but the previous user dividends still exist. It is critical to be able to grasp this wave of user dividends for transformation.” Zhang Yujuan told “Bullet Finance”.
Zhang Yujuan suggested that Third-party app stores can be used to tap the pain points of users’ just needs: application acquisition and mobile phone management.
In terms of application acquisition, you can mine users ’interests, do” professional community “,” best app information “media categories, and” develop before pre-launch “with deeper cooperation with developers, and find some advantageous resource sources” Hug your thigh “to weaken the functional attributes it distributes. In addition, in the direction of mobile phone management, tapping the pain points of current user habits and doing some small functions may have some opportunities.
“Third-party app stores that focus on vertical communities will have some living space, but the profit trend will decline year by year. Because the distribution form has been subverted, super apps and applets are closer to user choices.” Guo Peng admitted, “The backward product form cannot cultivate a novel profit model. The third-party stores that are currently operating are using the existing user base to earn the residual value of users.”
In Guo Peng’s view, in the future, everyone will abandon the application store form and engage in product forms that more cater to users. He told “Bullet Finance” that currently, Aikuyou also launched information and video applications that are more cater to users, and used a more mainstream platform to improve monetization capabilities.
Fifth, conclusion
For third-party app stores, there has been a lot of bad voices in the market, thinking that there is no future.
But Guo Jianhui disagrees. In his view, third-party stores are only cyclical. “The brand’s own app store can be gradually improved, but also because of the objective ‘whip’ of third parties. If there is no third party, the brand app storeIt may not be possible to return to a ‘flock’ state. At that time, a third party is likely to return as a ‘wolf’. “He said.
“It needs to be clear that what the user needs is not the App itself, but the services connected to it. The application store may try to refine the” service “in the application to directly connect the service to the user.” Guo Jianhui added.
“Is there a future for third-party app stores?” There has been no unified answer from the discussion of the early exit of small players to the “runaway” of the pea pods. But it’s not wrong to follow the needs of users.
Note: Fang Xing became a pseudonym at the request of the respondent.
This article comes from WeChat public account: Bullet Finance (ID: wwwhygc) author: Xu Yun