Updates in Android 15

On-Device Generative AI

As mentioned, a significant upgrade in the new operating system version 15 is its on-device AI processing system, Gemini Nano. Gemini Nano works without a network connection, and processing data locally enhances privacy and boosts performance. Once it becomes widely available, this technology is expected to revolutionize app functionalities.

Gemini Nano includes, e.g., contextual smart replies, text summarization, mood analysis, and writing assistance. We’re intrigued to learn which devices it will be available on, not knowing their technical requirements.

Jetpack compose

Jetpack Compose is a modern Android toolkit designed to build native user interfaces. Android 15 brings new adaptive layouts for Compose, tailored for various devices, such as phones, foldables, and tablets. 

New composables, such as ListDetailPaneScaffold, SupportingPaneScaffold, and NavigationSuiteScaffold, make creating responsive designs faster and easier.

Passkeys and Wear OS 5

With the introduction of Wear OS 5, Google is revolutionizing the sign-in experience on wearable devices. This update introduces single-tap sign-in for wearables using passkeys managed in Google’s credentials manager. 

This innovative feature eliminates the need for users to remember usernames and passwords. Wear OS 5 enables a seamless and secure sign-in experience, leveraging biometric data and unique identifiers for hassle-free access to their accounts. 

Kotlin Multiplatform (KMP)

Android’s official support for Kotlin Multiplatform marks a transformative step for app developers. This integration allows businesses to seamlessly share business logic across Android, web, server, and desktop platforms, streamlining the development process and reducing redundancy.

By leveraging Kotlin’s flexibility, you can now maintain consistent codebases, improve efficiency, and innovate more rapidly across various environments.

Read more: Will Kotlin Multiplatform Mobile change the game for native, hybrid, and cross-platform decisions?

Edge to Edge & Predictive Back

Android’s new edge-to-edge display mode and predictive back gestures enhance the navigation experience. Edge-to-edge allows the entire width and height of the device’s display to be used by drawing behind the system bars. 

Predictive back allows users to preview the destination or outcome of their back gesture. This enables the user to cancel their back action before completing it – to stay in the current view. All in all, this makes navigation more intuitive and reduces accidental back navigations and exits from apps.

Bluetooth auto on

This new feature automatically turns on Bluetooth when it detects nearby devices or specific conditions, simplifying connectivity for users who frequently use Bluetooth accessories. Moreover, users can disable Bluetooth for the rest of the day, with automatic reactivation the next day. 

This addition aligns with the find-my-trackers, enabling users to monitor their belongings and manage connectivity effortlessly.

Screen record detection

Screen record detection enables apps to notice if they are being screen-recorded. For apps dealing with sensitive information, you can invoke APIs to hide content during recordings – ensuring that sensitive data is protected.

Updates in the latest Android Studio version (Koala Canary Build)

New Features

The new Koala Canary build of Android Studio introduces several improvements aimed at boosting productivity. Enhanced Gradle build times, new layout inspector features, and improved support for Jetpack Compose stand out as major upgrades.

AI-Powered Code Suggestions

One of the most exciting new features in Android Studio Koala is the integration of AI-powered code suggestions through Google Gemini. 

This AI helps with intelligent code completion, refactoring suggestions, and bug detection, enabling faster code writing and early identification of potential issues.

Conclusion

Google I/O 2024 introduced a wealth of new features and enhancements businesses with Android apps can leverage to build better apps. From the powerful new capabilities of Android 15 to the advanced tools in Android Studio Koala, there’s plenty to explore and integrate into your mobile customer channel. If you’re interested in more, you can take a look at Google’s recaps on the event on their page.

Stay tuned for the official releases and start experimenting with these features to stay ahead in the ever-evolving world of Android development!

The post Google I/O 2024 key takeaways appeared first on Qvik.

1. Apple Intelligence

What’s new: In WWDC 2024, Apple unveiled advanced generative AI models for text rewriting, proofreading, summarising, and creating custom emojis based on user descriptions.

How to use: Integrate these features to enhance user engagement through smarter content creation and manipulation tools. You can add, e.g., automatic text summarization or real-time image editing capabilities to your app.

Ideal for: Communication apps, social media platforms, and creative tools that benefit from enhanced AI-driven functionalities​.

Device compatibility: Currently only supported by iPhone 15 Pro and iPads with M chips. The model range is expected to expand with new iPhone announcements this fall.

2. App Intents

What’s new: Enhanced orchestration capabilities allow for better Siri integration, with new APIs for task transferring and file management. Improved Spotlight indexing makes app functionalities easier to discover.

How to use: Use these capabilities to enable complex interactions within your app through Siri and Spotlight. For example, a task management app can provide detailed voice commands and better integration with iOS features.

Ideal for: Productivity apps, task managers, and applications benefiting from enhanced voice and search functionalities​.

3. SiriKit

What’s new: Apple revealed significant improvements to Siri’s handling of requests and conversational context, resulting in more fluid and intuitive interactions.

How to use: Businesses can use these improvements to create more natural and responsive voice-controlled experiences without additional work.

Ideal for: Apps heavily relying on voice commands, such as virtual assistants and home automation systems​.

4. Widgets and Live Activities

What’s new: Apple introduced new controls for widgets on the Control Center and Lock Screen, along with shared capabilities across iOS, iPadOS, and watchOS.

How to use: Create interactive widgets that provide real-time updates directly on the user’s screen or lock screen.

Ideal for: Sports apps, news apps, and applications benefiting from live data display, such as weather or stock market trackers​​.

5. Broadcast push notifications

What’s new: Apple now supports broadcast push notifications, allowing apps to send updates to all subscribed users simultaneously. This feature is designed to deliver updates to Live Activities at scale, ensuring timely and relevant information reaches users effectively.

How to use: Implement this feature to keep users informed about important updates, news, or live events in real time. You can use broadcast push notifications to engage users with real-time information and updates.

Ideal for: News apps, sports apps, event management platforms, and any application that needs to communicate timely and critical information to a broad user base​.

6. Passkeys

What’s new: Apple introduced more secure, user-friendly passkeys that replace traditional passwords alongside an automatic passkey upgrade API.

How to use: Integrate passkeys to enhance security and simplify the sign-in process for users.

Ideal for: Any app requiring user authentication, including financial services, e-commerce, and social networks​.

7. iPadOS enhancements

What’s new: iPadOS 18 features a redesigned tab bar, refined animations, and an updated document launch view.

How to use: Leverage these new design elements and features to enhance your app’s navigation and visual appeal.

Ideal for: Productivity tools, creative apps, and any application designed for the iPad platform​​.

8. Wallet and Apple Pay

What’s new: In WWDC 2024, Apple also introduced rich pass designs and third-party browser support for Apple Pay, making transactions more seamless.

How to use: Integrate these features to enhance the purchasing experience within your app, whether for in-app purchases or online shopping.

Ideal for: E-commerce platforms, event ticketing services, and any apps requiring payment processing​​.

Read more on recent updates for iOS payments: Apple opens NFC payment capabilities to all app developers in Europe

9. Maps

What’s new: The new Place Card API and improved search capabilities make Maps integration more powerful and user-friendly.

How to Use: Use these APIs to provide detailed location information and enhanced search functionality within your app.

Ideal for: Travel apps, navigation tools, and local discovery platforms​.

10. HealthKit

What’s new: New APIs focused on mental health and wellbeing, allowing apps to track emotions, moods, and overall mental health.

How to use: Integrate these features to provide comprehensive health and fitness tracking, especially focusing on mental wellness.

Ideal for: Health and fitness apps, particularly those aiming to provide mental health support​​.

11. Translation APIs

What’s new: A new framework for translating text across languages is now available.

How to use: Provide multilingual support within your app to reach a broader audience and enhance user experience.

Ideal for: Communication apps, travel services, and any app requiring language translation capabilities​.

12. App Store and StoreKit

What’s new: Apple has introduced powerful new tools and features to enhance In-App Purchases, including streamlined payment processes, global payment reach, and robust pricing tools. The StoreKit framework has been updated to simplify the implementation of In-App Purchases and subscriptions.

How to use: Leverage StoreKit to offer consumable and non-consumable In-App Purchases, auto-renewable subscriptions, and non-renewing subscriptions. Utilise new pricing tools to manage In-App Purchase pricing across international markets and take advantage of promotional features like promo codes and in-app events to boost engagement.

Ideal for: Any app looking to monetize through In-App Purchases, including games, media services, and productivity tools.

Read more: A practical guide to in-app purchases

The updates from WWDC 2024 provide exciting new opportunities for businesses and app developers. They enable creating more engaging, secure, and versatile applications.

Gain a competitive edge and enhance your user experience by taking advantage of the new features and APIs. For more detailed information, please visit the Apple Developer What’s New page.

Want to make your iOS app stand out? Read more about making your app a commercial and consumer success, or contact us.

The post WWDC 2024 key takeaways: 12 new helpful features for your iOS app this fall appeared first on Qvik.

Download the 2023 Qvik Insights study: What do your users want? Building mobile business on facts

Both performance and UX are highly affected by your chosen technology. This study explored the technology choices and downloads of top Finnish consumer apps to understand benchmarks across industries. We examined 93 apps, and excluded games.

Qvik’s software engineers collected the data in June 2024 by using custom scripts to extract tech stack information from Android Application Package (APK) files. 

Although the findings directly reflect Android, we assumed that companies use the same technology stack for Android and iOS apps.

Categories of apps analyzed

Five years ago, we already crowned Finland Europe’s leading app development country, and today, the Finnish app market is mature and versatile. Finns know that apps provide the strongest digital link between brands and customers, and extensively use them for business in various sectors.

As top services scatter throughout categories, the apps in this study span various industries. The most significant sectors represented are news, travel, automotive, sports, healthcare, shopping, and banking. The specific number of apps examined per category is in Graph 1.

Downloads of top Finnish consumer apps

One of the most common metrics for app success is the number of downloads. Overall, the install numbers of Finnish apps indicate the vast adoption of mobile across various categories, particularly in essential services.

The only app that stands out with over 10M+ downloads in our sample is Wolt. The Finnish food delivery app (acquired by Doordash two years ago) has grown into an international giant and, therefore, plays in its own league.

Apart from Wolt, however, over 55% of top Finnish apps fall within the 1M+ and 100K+ download ranges, dividing relatively evenly between these two.

Categories with apps boasting 1M+ installs include banking, delivery, digital security, ebooks, finance, grocery, news, parking, sports, telecom, transportation, traveling, video, and weather. Unsurprisingly, most of these apps are made for convenient completion of everyday tasks. Examples include reading the news or buying a train ticket. Another common denominator in the 1M+ range is that the services are national. 

The 100K+ download range also has national apps for everyday use but for brands with smaller market share. 

Did you know, by the way, that with well-executed app store optimization (including some rating hacks), your app could easily grow beyond the market share of your brand? Ask us how, or dig deeper into the subject through the links below. 

Read more: Survey: The best-rated apps get the most downloads

Read more: The best app store rating hacks in 2023

In comparison, the 1K+ download range includes apps aimed at smaller audiences and non-frequent transactions. These include, for example, local newspaper apps and apps for venues such as amusement parks. App functionality, marketing activities, and other factors that play into download numbers were outside our scope this time.

Table 1 shows the number of apps in each install range for all categories.

Technology stacks used by top Finnish consumer apps

When looking at the technology choices of top Finnish mobile apps, our study revealed a mix of native and cross-platform technologies. Here are our biggest findings.

Native apps are dominant

Native apps dominate overall, with a 63,4% share, and are most used across most app categories. Apps with native technology are also exclusively used in specific categories. Examples include banking, delivery, ebooks, and video, where performance and security are critical. The exact number of apps using each technology per category is in Graph 4.

The preference for “true native” highlights brands’ inclination towards the numerous pros of a native application. These include push notifications, flashy animations, accurate positioning and geofencing, biometric authentication, Bluetooth, platform-specific optimizations, and more.

Developing for iOS and Android platforms separately often requires more resources. However, brands seem to prefer the full control over their apps that true native brings along.

Cross-platform holds a steady second place

Despite the dominance of native apps, more than a third of top Finnish apps use cross-platform technologies. Cross-platform enables brands to build their iOS and Android apps on a single development track.

Gains depend on the domain, but overall, cross-platform solutions can significantly reduce repeat work. In Finland, cross-platform technologies are prevalent in automotive, education, news, shopping, transportation, and weather.

Many cross-platform apps enjoy high ratings, and several Finnish apps with more than a million downloads are built with React Native – reflecting its viability in delivering high-quality experiences.

Here’s the distribution between different cross-platform frameworks:

• React Native: Facebook’s framework leads the cross-platform race with a 25.8% overall share of top Finnish apps
• Flutter: Google’s Flutter holds a 5.4% share of top Finnish apps
• Web-based Cross-Platform (Cordova): Accounts for 4% of apps

Interestingly, in a 2023 global survey by Stack Overflow, answered by more than 50,000 professional developers, React Native (9.1%) and Flutter (9.2%) emerged as equally popular technology choices. When comparing these global statistics to the preferences in the Finnish market, it becomes apparent that React Native is significantly favored in Finland.

Despite cross-platform drawbacks – the dependency on the framework and missing support for all native features – its flexibility and cost-effectiveness make it an attractive option. This is especially true in categories that benefit from rapid development cycles and consistent performance across all platforms.

If you’re interested in reading more about the pros and cons of each mobile app technology, please take a look at the in-depth analysis we published in May 2024.

Read more: Native, hybrid or cross-platform in 2024? Choosing the
right mobile app technology goes a long way towards commercial
success

Conclusion

Our study on the technology choices and downloads of top Finnish consumer apps in 2024 highlights the evolving nature of mobile app development in Finland. 

Regarding technology, native holds a dominant position with a 63,4% overall share, some categories being exclusively native. Cross-platform technologies hold more than a third of the market, React Native being exceptionally popular in Finland. 

Install numbers indicate a successful adoption of mobile apps as an effective consumer channel across industries.

Overall, the findings reveal a developed mobile market with a balanced use of native and cross-platform technologies catering to different business needs and priorities. If you feel like you would like to have some assistance in finding the right approach for you, we are here to help.

Read more: Making your app a commercial and consumer success

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What has changed from 2020 to 2024?

Since this guide was first published in 2020, few things have changed. Progressive web apps have been dealt a serious blow by Apple which temporarily announced discontinuing support for WPA, and then reversed its opinion. The cross-platform technology stack has solidified. Today React Native (RN) and Flutter are the dominant choices, and seem equally popular. Xamarin is gone for good and Cordova is unpopular. Kotlin Multiplatform has slowly emerged as one alternative RN and Flutter.

Starting from web

When starting out, the first mobile app technology choice is between web apps and native apps. Overall, solutions such as Google G Suite demonstrate the viability and feasibility of web apps for providing critical productivity solutions.

Web apps became more competitive with Progressive Web Apps, or PWAs. PWAs can provide great, fast user experiences and a strong feeling of “a native app.” For instance, the Pinterest PWA launched in 2017 achieved numerous things: it doubled weekly active users, tripled session length, quadrupled the reach of individual Pins and made several technical breakthroughs. Web apps have limitations, however, particularly on iOS platforms, and thus cannot compete with native apps across all domains.

Going native is more than a single choice between web and native. There are at least three alternative routes for developing a native app: true natives, cross-platform, and hybrid. Each branch involves a number of further variations. We will now explore these and provide our opinions on which factors favour each variant.  

True native applications in focus

When talking about native apps, we refer to applications written fully using the proprietary languages and software development kits, namely Xcode (for iOS) and Android Studio. Their strongest selling point is unlimited control over the app and the best opportunities to utilize all the latest features of the operating system and third-party APIs.

Smooth and flashy animations are a hallmark of a native app UI. They are hard to match with other techniques. Here are some other benefits of native applications: 

• Push notifications
• Accurate positioning and geofencing
• Biometric authentication
• Bluetooth
• App-to-app integrations
• NFC and mobile wallet access
• Great overall performance

With true native apps, everything is divided: there are always separate Android and iOS development tracks. Although some applications might only exist on a single platform, by looking at the global market shares for iOS and Android (28% vs. 72% respectively) it is easy to understand that you can’t neglect either platform if you are trying to address the full audience. Only a company-internal app could succeed on a single platform if all employees are locked into it. On the other hand, there are luckily only two platforms left as Symbian, Windows, and Samsung’s proprietary platforms have vanished.

Paying the double price

The biggest implication of true native development is that you have to do everything twice: design, develop, deploy, and manage. In reality, two development tracks don’t double the effort, since there is overlap in, for example, back-end work and design.

The total bill can easily rack up, however. It is also not unheard of to see true native tracks developing at different paces, not only due to the platform’s evolution but also because the development of some features might take up different amounts of time for different platforms.

True native apps also have a few other drawbacks. The biggest hindrances are the application update and associated store review processes that every update has to go through. This slows down the overall update process. Secondly, most businesses have already developed web-based capabilities and content, which you can’t ignore when designing and maintaining the apps.

At Qvik, we’ve had good experiences developing native applications for multiple customers over the years. For example, in security and performance critical online banking, the natural mobile app technology choice has been native.

Cross-platform under the lens

The drawbacks of true native development can be partially mitigated by cross-platform solutions. Cross-platform frameworks enable you to develop iOS and Android applications on a single development track. React Native from Facebook and Flutter from Google are the prominent solutions in this category. Kotlin Multiplatform  is also a known solution for cross-platform development.

Based on the 2023 Stack Overflow developer survey, Flutter and React Native are equally popular technology choices (9.2% vs. 9.1%, respectively). Survey respondents also indicated very similar levels of interest in continuing with these technologies in the future.

The key idea is that cross-platform software development can mostly work with a single codebase or “thread,” with the exception of specific “true native” elements that still live inside a different thread. However, by taking as much code out from the native thread as possible, you can reduce repeat work. The expected gains largely depend on the application domain, but this can be a substantial advantage for many media or productivity apps.

Cross-platform development doesn’t come without its cons, however. First, the reliance on a framework means that development becomes dependent on the framework’s development in addition to the operating system’s. This increases the product’s overall complexity, possibly slowing development in other ways, such as making bug fixes more tedious. 

Frameworks do not support all native platform features, at least not immediately upon release. Second, you can’t satisfy all application needs by unifying development as there is always some “static” content that still needs to be managed. This brings us to hybrid solutions.

Hybrid solutions at a glance

The main idea of all hybrid applications is to wrap up parts of a (mobile) website and present them inside an app. The common technical term for this approach is webview.  A hybrid approach should reduce development and content creation needs radically.

Hybrids initially emerged as a shortcut for entering the application business with minimal investment in building real apps. Symbian and Windows apps were still relevant at the time and the entry costs were high. However, the benefits of “native-wrapped” web apps were thin, and the user experience with hybrids was not as convincing as with true native apps. 

The amount of variation in the hybrid space is currently noticeable. You can first choose between building a cross-platform hybrid app or a native hybrid app. This builds on the earlier distinction between these two development approaches. The second question is how much web components (logic, UI elements, content) can be adapted to the application.

At Qvik, we talk about “thin natives” and “heavy natives”, referring to the relative proportion of native components in the application as illustrated in the Table below.

The thinner the application, the more features the web service needs to provide to help run the native app. This is controversial because the expected savings from re-using web content are somewhat diminished by increased demands in web development. The amount of additional work depends on the complexity of the service. At the other end, the fat native app can benefit more from the synergies offered by cross-platform development. 

One case we have been heavily involved with concerns the Tallink & SiljaLine cruise booking and management application. This award-winning, popular and highly rated application (4.5 stars out of five) is an example of thin hybrid technology. It includes only three native views and more than a hundred webviews. The native parts handle navigation and status, and the rest of the app comes from several web services. The success of this approach speaks for the potential in hybrid, cross-platform development.  

Navigating the decision tree

If you count the end nodes for the different branches of mobile app technology choices, you find at least six alternatives. This is counting all true natives as one and ignoring the continuum of options between thin and fat hybrid breeds. How do you decide which path to take?

We at Qvik have been guiding some listed Finnish companies on their app development renewal journeys over the years. While the specifics and outcomes of the cases are different, we have also noted some interesting similarities.

When giving out tailored guidance, we propose that you can base your choices on the following:

1. Are web features enough for you, can you live with mediocre UX?
   → If yes, Choose a web app
   If not
2. How willing and able are you to utilize web components?
   → If not at all, Choose a true native or cross-platform
   Otherwise
3. How do you want to develop the hybrid app? Native or cross-platform, thin or heavy?
4. If you are leaning towards cross-platform, finally choose the cross-platform framework, Flutter or React Native

The choice is not easy. We have systematically explored the consequences of the mobile app technology choices with our clients in terms of expected investment, time-to-market, available talent, risks, and UX potential.  Each of these factors will have a different weight in different business domains. 

For instance, if your current app is built on outdated technology, time-to-market will be more important as a fast replacement is needed. If you have chosen to fully in-house your development resources, you need to consider their capabilities for working with a specific technology: will it require outside help or re-training – and are those external resources available? 

Somewhat to our surprise, we have found ourselves recommending React Native after all but one of these reviews. We have justified this recommendation based on:

• a single language & codebase 
• synergy with web development expertise & tools
• a fast development cycle
• simplified lifecycle methods 
• opportunity to push updates without an app review

On the other hand, all of these cases have had strong web development capability in-house to build on. But every case is unique, and there are more variables in play than I can list here. The recommendation for your service’s mobile app technology might differ, should any of the variables change.

Contact us if your organization needs more insight on choosing the right mobile app technology for your purposes – we’d be happy to chat. If you’d like to accelerate your app’s road to consumer and commercial success by other means and with minimal investment, check out our Mobile app success package.

This article has been composed with input from multiple Qvik experts, most recently Andrei Sadovnicov and Jani Mikkonen – thanks for all involved!

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Download the report: Qvik Insights – What do your users want? Building mobile business on facts 2023

By the end of this guide, you’ll be able to make informed decisions for your in-app strategy. Let’s dive in!

Different types of in-app purchases

A successful IAP strategy is user-centered. It adds value in ways that cater to the needs and preferences of your audience. Here’s a complete breakdown of the sorts of IAPs currently available.

Consumable purchases

Consumables are items that can be used once. Typical examples are in games where users can buy virtual currencies, power-ups, and special abilities.

Non-consumable purchases

Non-consumables are one-time purchases that permanently enhance the user experience. These include, e.g., unlocking added functionality or an ad-free experience.

Auto-renewable subscriptions

Auto-renewable subscriptions allow users to purchase access to services for a set period, automatically renewing until canceled. Examples include different entertainment services, such as Spotify, Disney+, or Netflix, and premium features in productivity apps, such as Headspace. Over 50% of Finns prefer to pay with an auto-renewing subscription.

Non-renewing subscriptions

Non-renewing subscriptions provide access to services for a limited time but do not automatically renew. These are suitable for seasonal content and temporary access, like a sports season pass or a fitness program.

Marketing strategies for in-app purchases

Once your in-app purchases are up and running, it’s time to promote. To make the most out of your marketing budget, verify once more that you have these fundamentals in place:

• Make sure your value proposition is clear. Users are more likely to spend money if they understand what they’re getting.
  
  
• Ensure a seamless purchase flow. Complicated processes can deter potential customers, so buying should be as smooth and simple as possible.
  
  
• Have a process for collecting and using user feedback to mold your offering. Monitor sales and use data – this way, you’ll meet user demands more accurately.

Great! Now – for best sales results, you must actively promote. Below, we’ve listed the best marketing strategies for in-app purchases and subscriptions.

Marketing in-app purchases

1. Optimize your store listings
   To attract new users from the store, optimize your app’s listing with high-quality screenshots and descriptions. Highlight the added value of in-app purchases in clear and enticing ways.
   
   
2. Boost with notifications and UI elements
   Promote available purchases using in-app notifications and custom UI elements. Highlighting limited-time offers or exclusive items can encourage users to make a purchase.
   
   
3. Utilize holidays and special events
   Leverage holiday seasons and special events by offering themed items and discounts.

Marketing subscriptions

1. Give free trials and introductory offers
   To attract new users to your subscription service, offer them discounted or free trials. Offers and trials are lucrative for converting free users into paying subscribers.
   
   
2. Distribute discount codes in your marketing channels
   Distribute discount codes through social media or email to offer subscription price reductions. Reductions are especially useful for re-engaging past subscribers or rewarding loyal customers.
   
   
3. Offer temporary promotions
   To retain your existing users who are considering cancellation, offer temporary promotions such as a month of service at a reduced rate or access to additional premium content.
   
   
4. Consider tiered pricing
   Implementing multiple subscription tiers caters to different needs and budgets, increasing your app’s appeal to a broader audience. Differentiate the benefits and features of each tier clearly.

Restrictions to in-app purchases

The world of in-app purchases is versatile, but not everything can be sold in-app. The restrictions protect users from deceptive practices and ensure a fair market environment within each app store. Knowing the limits of IAPs is important to comply with platform guidelines.

Here’s a detailed look at the limitations for in-app purchases.

In-app purchases have to be used inside the app

Apple and Google limit in-app purchases to digital goods and services, and selling physical items is not allowed. Physical products or services must be processed using external payment systems.

Apple’s family sharing only covers subscriptions and non-consumables

Apple’s Family Sharing feature lets up to six family members share access to apps, music, movies, and books. However, only non-consumable purchases and subscriptions can be shared. Consumable items are intended for use by a single user.

Store-specific restrictions and policies

Apple and Google have strict guidelines to ensure that in-app purchases are safe and benefit users. Google Play requires that digital goods and services sold through the Google Play Billing system adhere to specific usage policies. Apple prohibits redirection to external stores or services.

Commission structures for in-app purchases in the EU

Last but not least, you need to consider the costs of the in-app purchases you’re offering. Due to different commission structures offered by Apple and Google, choosing the right platform can play a big role in achieving your goals.

While Apple recently renewed its rates to align with the EU’s Digital Markets Act, Google offers a reduced subscription rate and opportunities beyond their own billing system.

Apple’s commission structure

Apple renewed its commission structure for apps distributed in the European Union in March 2019 as part of the company’s compliance with the EU’s Digital Markets Act. The new program allows businesses to choose between the traditional commission rates and new, reduced rates.

Traditional commission structure

Historically, Apple has charged a 30% commission on all paid apps, in-app purchases, and subscriptions. Businesses in Apple’s small business program have paid a reduced commission rate of 15%. Businesses that earn $1 million or less in annual proceeds (across all their apps) have been eligible to enroll in the small business program.

New reduced commission structure

Under the new terms of the Digital Markets Act, Apple offers a reduced commission rate of 17% for all apps. In the new structure, businesses using Apple’s own In-App Purchase System are charged an additional 3%, making the total commission 20%.

Businesses in the small business program pay a further reduced commission of 10%. The same additional 3% fee applies for small businesses using Apple’s In-App Purchase System, totalling 13% in fees.

However, Apple’s Core Technology Fee (CTF) is part of the new structure. It imposes a €0.50 charge per annual install for apps that exceed one million downloads per year in the EU. This fee applies per user account for the first install in a 12-month period, whether the app is sold inside the App Store or through a third-party marketplace. Notably, there are exemptions to this fee:

• No revenue exemption: Developers who create free apps without any form of monetization – whether through sales, advertising, or otherwise –are not required to pay the CTF. This exemption is designed to support students, hobbyists, and other non-commercial developers who may create popular apps without a revenue model.
  
  
• Small developer on-ramp exemption: Small developers with less than €10 million in global annual business revenue are given a 3-year grace period where they are exempt from the CTF, even if their apps exceed one million first annual installs. The initiative aims to assist small developers in scaling their operations without the immediate financial burden. If such developers grow to earn between €10 million and €50 million during this period, the CTF will apply after crossing one million installs, capped at €1 million per year.

While the commission rates are lower in Apple’s new structure, businesses should beware of the CTFs, which can amount to substantial costs. Apple provides a fee calculator tool to help companies predict their costs under the new structure.

Google’s commission structure

Google’s commission structure differs from Apple’s in several ways. Below is everything you need to know about the app fees and rates in Google Play.

Standard commission rate

Google Play typically charges a standard commission of 30% on in-app purchases for all apps. This rate applies to both digital goods and subscriptions.

Reduced rate for subscriptions

However, after the first year of auto-renewing subscriptions, Google reduces the commission to 15%. This policy aims to encourage developers to maintain long-term relationships with subscribers.

Promotions and discounts

Google also occasionally offers promotional rates and special programs that can temporarily reduce your commission rate. Businesses should stay updated with Google’s latest offerings to take advantage of these opportunities.

Alternative billing options

Recently, Google has also begun allowing businesses to implement alternative in-app billing systems, offering a significant advantage. Alternative systems can reduce or entirely bypass standard commission rates. However, remember to factor in all integration and operational implications before settling on one.

Conclusion

In-app purchases are an essential tool for monetizing mobile apps, and using them effectively can determine the success of your app.

However, navigating the in-app purchase landscape requires a strategic approach. To achieve success with in-app purchases, you need to consider the type of your business, target audience, and the opportunities and limitations of in-app purchases on both Apple’s and Google’s platforms. You must understand the different types of IAPs available, including their marketing strategies and cost structures, to make choices that best support your goals.

All in all, the investments you make in perfecting your in-app offerings will be worthwhile in getting your share of the increasing consumer spend in mobile.

Is your mobile app giving you the commercial results you want? If not, take a look at our Mobile app success offering package, designed to make your app a commercial and consumer success with minimal investment.

The post A practical guide to in-app purchases appeared first on Qvik.

In the first phase, Apple’s added NFC functionality will be limited to new payment capabilities. Apple will begin supporting contactless smartphone payment transactions within banks’ banking or wallet apps. The change promises to enhance iOS devices’ functionality and competitive edge in mobile payments. 

This article explores NFC, its use across industries, and what Apple’s latest decision means for businesses and users.

What does NFC do in mobile, and how can you use it in your industry?

Simply put, NFC is a set of communication protocols that enable two electronic devices to communicate securely within roughly four centimeters. Primarily used in smartphones, NFC allows devices to perform simple wireless transactions, such as mobile payments, quickly and securely. The latest update by Apple specifically utilizes host card emulation (HCE).

NFC capabilities are widely accessible on Android devices, having enabled plenty of applications to emerge. Users can pair devices, share content, and even program NFC tags directly from their smartphones without additional software.

To give you an idea of the versatile use cases for NFC, here are examples for industry-specific uses:

• Logistics: Businesses use NFC to track inventory and manage supply chains. NFC tags placed on items help track the movement and history of products throughout the supply chain.
  
  
• Healthcare: In healthcare settings, NFC enables secure patient identification and tracking, quick access to medical records, and easy monitoring of drug authenticity.
  
  
• Retail: Shops utilize NFC for interactive customer experiences. Examples include touch-to-learn-more labels on products, mobile coupon redemption, and quick checkout processes.
  
  
• Finance: NFC enables efficient contactless payments on platforms such as Apple Pay and Google Wallet.
  
  
• Travel and events: Travel and event industries use NFC tags to facilitate fast pass entries. They also use it to provide information directly to attendees’ smartphones, improving the overall customer experience and engagement.

Each application in the list leverages NFC’s core benefit — its simplicity and speed of communication. NFC facilitates almost instantaneous data exchange, typically within milliseconds. Rapid communication matches modern consumer expectations and is especially important for applications requiring quick authentication and transactions, such as payment systems and secure access controls.

iOS NFC capabilities now and what to expect down the line

While Apple will take its time opening NFC capabilities for businesses, the recent shift is expected to eventually make NFC on iOS a standard.

Despite Apple’s phased approach, the horizon is promising. Apple holds a significant market share in Europe, so the potential is big. By fostering a rich ecosystem of third-party NFC applications, Apple could enhance its platform’s versatility and user engagement, redefining user experiences and business opportunities.

Before the newest announcement, Apple limited the use of NFC on its phones to scanning tags. Looking at the Android market’s current state, we can predict iOS’s future NFC capabilities. Below is a list of functionalities immediately available with the newest iOS update, as well as a list of expanded capabilities we expect to become available later.

Immediately available

• Interactive marketing: Core NFC functionality, which has been available on iPhones for some time. It allows NFC tags to be placed in stores to give customers access to digital content, such as product information and offers, by scanning. While this capability isn’t new, recent updates from Apple may increase the reliability and speed of these interactions.
  
  
• Secure payment transactions: European banks can now offer their own NFC-based payment solutions on iPhones. This allows customers to use their banking apps to make contactless payments directly.

Expected to be available later

• Loyalty and reward programs: As for now, the introduced HCE capabilities do not extend to loyalty and reward programs. In terms of NFC, these programs remain constrained to scanning barcodes and QR codes to store loyalty cards in Apple Wallet. More interactive loyalty transactions already available on Android, like tapping to earn points or redeem rewards, are likely to be on Apple’s roadmap.
  
  
• Access to the secure element: Android apps can access the secure element for additional security functionalities. This is an NFC function likely to be offered for iOS apps in the future.
  
  
• More devices: Apple has yet to expand NFC capabilities on Apple Watch beyond Apple Pay. iPads currently lack NFC functionality, however, Apple has announced plans to introduce NFC capabilities to iPadOS later this fall. The expansion comes with the new regulatory changes under the Digital Markets Act, and is part of broader efforts to align iPadOS with iOS features. This will enable businesses to provide more seamless customer experiences across Apple devices.
  
  
• Public digital currencies, e.g., the digital euro: The ECB needs access to NFC to develop the digital euro’s offline features. Apple hasn’t yet granted this. However, it’s likely to comply in the future. Otherwise, it would exclude its users from future government-backed digital currency initiatives.
  
  
• Flexible and creative uses: To keep up with competition, a more comprehensive range of potential uses are bound to be uncovered within the next decade of Apple opening up its ecosystem. This includes functions such as peer-to-peer (P2P) connections and more flexible app development. Broader access to NFC will increase iOS apps’ competitiveness, permitting more creative and interactive uses for the technology.
  
  
• Geographical expansion: Apple’s current regional focus on Europe is a direct response to local regulatory requirements and significantly impacts the availability and functionality of NFC features. The restriction affects global banks and international retailers who might want to offer uniform services across all regions. Hence, we’re hopeful that Apple will eventually expand its NFC access to a global degree.

Strategic recommendations and conclusion

Banks and retailers should be aware of the differences between iOS and Android NFC capabilities and consider these when developing their apps. By tailoring applications to the platforms’ strengths and restrictions, businesses can fully leverage the unique features of both iOS and Android to cover a more extensive user base and meet diverse customer needs effectively.

As you develop NFC functionalities, take time to educate your customers on how to use NFC effectively, focusing on the benefits and ease of use. This will substantially increase your adoption rates and return on investment.

As Apple’s more open NFC ecosystem stems from legislation, staying up to date with European compliance requirements and innovating within these frameworks ahead of time will help you beat the competition to the newest features and differentiate your services.

In general, newly available NFC features on iOS will provide notable advancements to NFC technology utilization and digital offerings in the European market, paving the way for a more interconnected and efficient digital future.

Do you want to be among the first to improve your customer experience with the newest NFC features? Take a look at our mobile and payment optimization packages, or contact Sampsa and Sami below.

The post Apple opens NFC payment capabilities to all app developers in Europe appeared first on Qvik.

Only one in ten prefers a fixed-term subscription, and only 15% of Finns prefer to pay for mobile services with one-time payments.

So far, subscription-based business models have been most common in entertainment and educational apps. As most Finns are willing to use a subscription-based payment method but only have one to three active subscriptions, other industries too have a great opportunity to leverage the subscription economy.

Suunto Sports Tracker Premium got a 68% increase in premium users in a few months, and 70% of the new users continued after the free trial

One great example of a well-executed subscription-based application is our client Suunto’s Sports Tracker Premium. Sports Tracker was one of the first mobile sports trackers and has hundreds of thousands of active users each month, with over 700,000 users just in Finland.

Suunto acquired Sports Tracker in 2015. To change the app from a money sink to a viable business, they started building a subscription-based premium model around it in November last year.

The design work for Sports Tracker Premium is done by Qvik’s Minna Nurminen and Oona Lindqvist. In the beginning, the team consisted of Suunto’s product owner Antti Sorvari, Nurminen and Lindqvist, Qvik developers Kate Khudzhamkulova and Joel Pöllänen, and one developer from Vincit.

The work started with surveys and benchmarking and ended with a ROI of over €110,000/month

As Suunto wanted to keep Sports Tracker partially free, the team needed to strike a perfect balance between keeping the app viable and usable for everyone and still giving enough value for premium users so they would pay for it.

The first step was to find out how interested Sports Tracker users would be in certain content and features that the team already knew were popular and possible to deliver.

“Then we asked if the users would be willing to pay for that content, and if so, how much. In addition, we asked background questions to get an understanding of what types of users would be willing to pay”, says Qvik’s product designer Minna Nurminen, who had a crucial role in the concept, validation and design work of Sports Tracker Premium.

Benchmarking and user surveys confirmed the existence of a market and an audience for Sports Tracker Premium.

“Our work in defining user personas and value propositions helped us stay focused on the user’s needs. Together with the survey results and user data, this helped us decide what features to include in the premium subscription.​”

Minna Nurminen, Product Designer from Qvik

As stated in the subheader, this story has a happy ending: users see the value of Sports Tracker Premium, are willing to subscribe, and the premium feature produced €110,000 in revenue to Suunto already in May 2023. Since then, the amount of subscribers has increased steadily and, naturally, so has the revenue.

Get ready to improve acceptance rates with network tokenisation

When we studied the reasons why Finns cancel their subscriptions, we found that almost a fifth (18%) stopped using a service simply because the service period ended and they did not renew the subscription – so they didn’t even actively decide to cancel. 

One way to make it easier for the user to continue a subscription is to use network tokenisation in the payment flow. Google Pay and Apple Pay already rely on network tokenisation, and soon, it will be available for all card payments.

“The health and prosperity of a merchant’s business are closely tied to the authorisation rates of payment cards. When the card authorisation rate is higher, there is an increased probability of repeat customer transactions, leading to higher business revenue”

Sami Nurmi, Payment Specialist from Qvik

With the growing adoption of subscription-based business models, the significance of a secure and seamless payment solution for handling recurring transactions cannot be emphasised enough. Network tokenisation plays a vital role in this, as it substitutes sensitive card information with unique tokens.

These token values safeguard cardholder details and maintain the capability to execute transactions even if the physical card is lost, blocked, or expired. Essentially, this incorporates a card-updater functionality and protects recurring payments.

This article is written based on Qvik’s and Paytrail’s event The subscription revolution: Exploring the future of digital business. Paytrail offers a mobile payment SDK that supports recurring payments through payment card tokenisation. The technical implementation of Paytrail’s mobile payment SDK is done by Qvik’s developers.

Download Qvik Insights report of the most attractive business models for mobile apps and digital services.

Building mobile business on facts

We studied how the Finns want to pay in applications, how willing they are to pay for applications, and what expectations they have for customer service and signing in to applications.

Find out how Finns use digital services.

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If you wish to learn more about how network tokenisation would benefit your business, feel free to contact our advisory team’s Mikko Vahter or Sami Nurmi.

Sami Nurmi

Senior Consultant, Payment Solutions

sami.nurmi@qvik.com

Mikko Vahter

Advisory & Payments

+358408094505mikko.vahter@qvik.com

The post Lessons from Suunto Sports Tracker Premium: How to build the best subscription-based model for your business appeared first on Qvik.

These were the improvements the team made:

• Address critical user feedback by resolving major UX issues
• Refresh App and Play store presence with new app images
• Design and implement rating prompts around happy moments
• Reset App Store reviews

Each of these steps was quite a small investment in terms of design and development work, but together they did wonders to the ratings!

“The biggest effort in hacking ratings is having a designer identify and visualize the most promising happy moments in using the service”, Ukkonen says.

A key observation related to this is that by proactively asking customers to rate the application we are more likely to get positive ratings and reviews as well. Customers tend to give feedback mostly when they are not satisfied, not when things work as they should.

A crucial insight we’ve gained is that actively encouraging customers to rate our application can lead to more positive ratings and reviews. Typically, customers are more inclined to provide feedback when they experience dissatisfaction, rather than when the application functions as expected.

“Doing the groundwork properly requires input from developers and the PO as well as taking a look at analytics data. After that, it’s a fairly straightforward task for the developers to make it possible for users to provide the reviews.”

The work took only a few days of Jesse’s time but proved to have a huge return in ratings.

Try Qvik’s ratings simulator to understand what would happen if you had 1,000 favorable reviews more

Considering the different hacking options available, it’s good to forecast how your ratings could develop as a result of rating activation. We have a tool for you to help predict what might happen.

The Qvik ratings hack simulator is a simple calculation tool to help set goals and assess your chances in hacking ratings. Starting with your current app ratings, it allows you to quickly see the outcome in overall score as well as rating distribution.

For instance, if you currently have an average rating of 2.0 with 500 ratings, how many 4- or 5-star ratings do you need to rise above the critical 4-star level? The answer is almost 1,000 five-star ratings. Whether this is a lot to ask depends on your overall pool of passive users.

Give it a try over here!

Further reading:

• The best app store rating hacks in 2023
• Survey: The best-rated apps get the most downloads
• How many stars does your app have?
• Mobile App Ratings and Reviews: Where to Start and How to Win

For background research, big thanks to senior product designer Jesse Ukkonen and Phaneendra Adabala, Qvik’s front-end developer mastermind. Another big hand goes to developer Mehmet Sukan who created the Qvik App Ratings Simulator based on the author’s idea.

Illustration: Niina Nissinen

The post Case study: How the K-Ruoka team doubled their average rating appeared first on Qvik.

Read this article to get an idea of the current opportunities for rating hacking, and the limitations imposed by the platforms. The article is inspired by K-Ruoka’s product team, including Qvik’s designer Jesse Ukkonen – they very recently worked their App Store rating from 2.2 to 4.4 stars in a couple of months.

We will write more about this soon, but you can already test Qvik’s app ratings simulator here.

Why work on app ratings?

Research consistently shows that consumers are sensitive to application ratings. If your app is stuck at below 3 stars, many users will think twice before downloading it. This can be critical for the product’s success if you are trying to build business with the app alone and compete with other similar products. You really need to achieve at least three stars to even be considered by the consumers.

This is not an issue limited to app-only products such as mobile games. Even brands that have a wider presence, such as web services, brick and mortar, or third-party retailers, can have their brand negatively affected by poor ratings. Data shared by AppTentive (by Alchemer) showed that a 1- or 2-star rating for a well-known brand’s app has a negative impact on the brand as a whole.

We have recently confirmed similar customer opinions among Finnish mobile users. Over 80% of consumers polled in 2023 show sensitivity to app ratings and over 70% of them also read the reviews. Consumers are particularly interested in critical reviews and developer responses.

Why do people rate and review apps?

App reviews, written feedback and star ratings have become a standard method for users to give feedback and communicate their success or frustration with the app.

Spontaneous feedback is usually very polarized. People are either ecstatic and super happy with the app or, more probably, infuriated with it because something has gone against their expectations or created some form of friction.

AppTentive says that companies usually receive spontaneous feedback from only 1% of their user base, while the “silent majority” (the 99%) never voice their opinion. The bottom 1% are very dangerous to the brand, whereas the silent majority conceals an opportunity for boosting reviews and countering the vocal, negative minority.

What’s an app store rating hack?

Hacking is a loaded word and does not fit too well in this context, because rating hacking does not have anything to do with illegitimate access to the application store. Rather, it is fully dependent on individual humans leaving favorable ratings for an app. 

Rating hacking is best described as a collection of practices aimed at persuading users to leave positive reviews as a result of actual positive experiences with the product. 

Historically, acquiring app reviews has been considered a possible, if not outright questionable, method of buying your way to the top. There are still companies selling positive app ratings and reviews as a service, but we don’t condone this practice or consider it to be a valid rating hacking method.

Paid reviews also go against platform guidelines and can have several negative consequences. First, it means that your $0.10 five-star reviews may be gone the next day if the account posting them becomes permanently banned from the platform. If it becomes obvious that you, as a publisher, have been complicit in the fake reviews, you will be warned, and in the worst case, your account and app could be banned.

Legitimate rating hacks

In short, hacking ratings works in the following ways, from most convenient to most disruptive:

• Make your product page more attractive in the application store
• Activate your users in happy moments to post reviews and ratings
• Respond to non-positive user reviews in the hope of persuading users to revise their ratings and reviews
• Improve your product to reduce the incidence of bad user experiences described in reviews
• Mitigate known bad rating risks by proactively capturing negative feedback privately inside the app instead of letting it flood over to the platform
• Report inappropriate reviews to the platform  
• Reset App Store ratings during an updates
• Relaunch the app as a totally new app

Of these actions, activating users in happy moments deserves a bit of elaboration. It refers to prompting users to give feedback at the end of successful user journeys, when there is reason to believe that the user is as satisfied as possible with the app.

Rules of the game: what you can do on the platforms?

The previous list ended with two radical options: resetting ratings and releasing a completely new app. Resetting the ratings of an existing app is only available on the App Store, and the publisher can do that with every update if they choose. The reviews will remain, however. The only way to reset Google Play Store ratings or get rid of negative reviews anywhere is to release a brand new app. That’s probably never the preferred choice. The only remaining thing to do is to flag and report hostile reviews.  

Looking at the easier options of the previous lists, a simple trick is to activate the silent majority with some well-placed prompts.

There are differences between the platforms in how you can activate users. For a few years now, iOS has been offering a built-in option for asking users to rate and review the app on the App Store. You can push the request no more than three times in a 365-day period. On Android, no such limitation exists and developers are free to implement the prompt as they see fit.

Further reading:

• Survey: The best-rated apps get the most downloads
• How many stars does your app have?
• Mobile App Ratings and Reviews: Where to Start and How to Win

Illustration: Aija Malmioja

The post The best app store rating hacks in 2023 appeared first on Qvik.

To better understand the Nordic market, we investigated the opinions of Finnish consumers (N=1,000, representative of the full population) in March 2023. The results show that their thoughts are well-aligned with global research.

Ratings matter to Finns too

The main finding is that the average rating has a strong influence on the intention to download or dismiss an app. Over 80% of Finns agree that apps scoring over 4 stars are worth a try, whereas apps getting under 3 stars are likely not to be tried at all. Only less than a third of the respondents say that ratings don’t matter (31%) or that they never read the reviews (21%).

We also learned that verbal reviews are surprisingly important. Nearly 3 in 4 consumers always check the reviews before downloading, paying attention to the publisher’s responses to user comments, and also look at the critical reviews in particular.

Why should you care about getting the best app ratings and reviews?

What we now found in polling Finnish consumers is that app ratings and reviews matter a lot to people when thinking about acquiring a new app. This is a good reminder that application developers must take user reviews seriously, do their best to deliver great products and put some effort into maintaining their application store presence if they want to see organic growth for their product.

We posted a great article in 2019 about a practice known as rating hacking. While many of the technical steps outlined in that guide still hold, we will very soon release an updated article that takes into account the latest developments in platforms. It also tells the story of a very recent, successful rating hack on the App Store.

Illustration: Niina Nissinen

For more information

Lassi A. Liikkanen

Director of Product Design and Insight

+358503841508 lassi.liikkanen@qvik.fi

Juha “Millennium” Falck

Director of New Business Acquisition

+35850 362 2659juha.falck@qvik.fi

The post Survey: The best-rated apps get the most downloads appeared first on Qvik.