App developers see the tide turning in Apple’s favor inside many companies, with iOS outpacing Android as the preferred mobile platform for the enterprise, according to a new survey from mobile platform company Appcelerator and the IDC research firm.

“The big news is that Apple’s iOS took a dramatic lead over Google’s Android in the enterprise app space,” said Scott Ellison, vice president of Mobile and Connected Consumer Platforms at IDC. “For developers, Android appears to be evolving more towards a consumer play, which in turn provides a key competitive opening for Microsoft in the enterprise mobile app space.”

Results from the survey of more than 3,600 app developers were released this morning. They shows iOS jumping out ahead in app developer sentiment with a 15 percentage point advantage over Android on the question, “Which OS is best positioned to win in the enterprise long term?”

In the third quarter of last year, Android and iOS were tied on that question with 44 percent each. In the latest survey, conducted in May, iOS received 53 percent of responses compared to Android’s 38 percent.

IDC and Appcelerator credit Apple’s growing strength in the enterprise, including “the popularity of the iPad; frequent reports of Android malware; enterprise challenges in dealing with Android fragmentation; and resultant anecdotal reports of enterprises re-evaluating widespread Android deployment outside of particular business vertical implementations like (machine to machine data).”

On the subject of Microsoft’s platforms, the report says that 33 percent of developers are “very interested” in Windows 8 tablets.

The report says, “Developers are cautiously optimistic about Windows 8 tablets, and find Microsoft’s Metro UI especially compelling. Therefore a key dynamic to watch going forward will be Microsoft’s opportunity to eclipse Android as the Number Two OS priority for mobile enterprise app developers, especially given Microsoft’s strengths in the enterprise market through Office and Windows.”

However, the report finds that Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 has lost traction among the surveyed developers, with those saying they were “very interested” in developing for the platform dropping from 37 percent in the first quarter to 25 percent in the second quarter.

Like what you're reading? Subscribe to GeekWire's free newsletters to catch every headline

Job Listings on GeekWork

Find more jobs on GeekWork. Employers, post a job here.