In the early years of mobile apps,  paid apps generated more revenue for many developers, but over the years we have see a shift. According to data from Distimo, in-app purchases (usually from free apps), are now steering the revenue charge.

Distimo data looks at revenue from the app stores and finds that almost 98 percent of Google Play revenue and 92 percent of Apple App Store revenue that were created from in-app purchases were made from within free apps (November 2013). As recently as the beginning of 2013, both Google’s and Apple’s stores were seeing around 10 percent less revenue from in-app purchases each. Additionally, eMarketer suggests that just over 40 percent of all app revenues will came from in-app purchases in 2013 and that the share will grow to 47.5 percent by 2017.

Over 62 percent of the US population now owns a smartphone with the most logged on to web site being the Google sites at 88 percent reach, followed by Facebook at 84 percent reach. Broken down, comScore reports that as a manufacturer Apple leads the way with a 40 percent OEM marketshare, while Google/Android holds 52 percent of the platform marketplace. Regarding mobile apps, Facebook’s mobile app comes in first, reaching 75 percent of the marketplace.

Swirl Networks just released their recent research about consumer willingness to receive in-store beacon triggered alerts. Swirl’s research points out that 77 percent of consumers are willing to enable their smartphone location data [a requirement for beacon-triggered alerts via mobile application] as long as they received proper value in return.

“Consumers are integrating the mobile experience into their everyday lives more and more every day,” states Pacific App Design’s Managing Director Kimber Johnson. “As long as the experiences are positive for the consumer, we will see them continue to integrate mobile more fully into all of their daily activities.”

Swirl’s study points out that consumers are significantly more likely to share their location information to retailers (65%) than to independent shopping apps or even Google or Facebook.

In conclusion, Kimber Johnson states, “Retailers must be careful with the trust consumers give them and provide alerts that are relevant and have value, if they are not providing that, consumers will quickly discontinue participation in the program.”

ResponseTap has issued a new report stating that they have found that many more shoppers start their purchase process on a smartphone than was previously known.

Most notable on this report is the statistic that sales influenced by mobile devices are being vastly underestimated. ResponseTap found that since marketers were not tracking telephone call sales and linking them back to mobile activity that the overall conversion figures did not reflecting the true picture of mobile’s impact on purchasing. It was previously thought that mobile phones were part of 0.4 percent of transactions but by factoring in phone sales we see that it the number is actual 1.3 percent of conversions.

Adding telephone sales into tablet related conversions makes a huge difference in that area as well, doubling the previous 1.5 percent made via tablets to 3.1 percent when telephone calls prompted by their tablet activity are factored in. Web based sales reflect similar numbers as many do research on a pc before calling to purchase. These findings reflect previous research that found about half (54 percent) of consumers like to have human contact to complete a purchase.

“There are strong implications here that businesses need to be aware of,” says Kimber Johnson, Managing Director, Pacific App Design, “you need to be aware that while customers may not make the purchase via your mobile web site or mobile application, they may very well be starting to research you and your products there. A strong mobile app or mobile web site could be the key to getting those calls ordering your products.”

Full ResponseTap study results can be found here.