When Apple introduced the App Store shortly after the iPhone debuted, many saw a new world opening up with infinitely customizable computers coming to every pocket. But as time goes on, a few companies tend to dominate the mobile marketplace.
According to research from Nielsen, Facebook’s mobile app continues to reach the largest audience, with more than 126 million unique users. The social network also had the #3 app (Facebook Messenger) and #8 app (Instagram) for the past year.
But it was Google that dominated mobile this year. Five of the top 10 most used apps came from the Mountain View-based search giant. YouTube came in second with more than 97 million users, while Search, Play, Maps and Gmail held down the middle of the chart.
The only other competition was Apple, with Apple Music and Apple Maps coming in at the end of the list. Interestingly, both Apple apps were beaten out by third-party competitors that offer apps on its platform. Apple Maps, which is far behind Google Maps, is still trying to overcome its initial bad rap, while Apple Music, which is dominated by Google Play, entered an already crowded field with a middling product.
While many people have other apps they frequently use on their devices, goliaths like Facebook and Google, which rely on ad dollars to finance their free apps and services, still have a firm grasp on mobile usage.
