Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the weekly TechCrunch series that recaps the latest in mobile OS news, mobile applications and the overall app economy.
The app industry continues to grow, with a record number of downloads and consumer spending across both the iOS and Google Play stores combined in 2021, according to the latest year-end reports. Global spending across iOS, Google Play and third-party Android app stores in China grew 19% in 2021 to reach $170 billion. Downloads of apps also grew by 5%, reaching 230 billion in 2021, and mobile ad spend grew 23% year over year to reach $295 billion.
Today’s consumers now spend more time in apps than ever before — even topping the time they spend watching TV, in some cases. The average American watches 3.1 hours of TV per day, for example, but in 2021, they spent 4.1 hours on their mobile device. And they’re not even the world’s heaviest mobile users. In markets like Brazil, Indonesia and South Korea, users surpassed five hours per day in mobile apps in 2021.
Apps aren’t just a way to pass idle hours, either. They can grow to become huge businesses. In 2021, 233 apps and games generated over $100 million in consumer spend, and 13 topped $1 billion in revenue. This was up 20% from 2020, when 193 apps and games topped $100 million in annual consumer spend, and just eight apps topped $1 billion.
This Week in Apps offers a way to keep up with this fast-moving industry in one place, with the latest from the world of apps, including news, updates, startup fundings, mergers and acquisitions, and suggestions about new apps to try, too.
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Image Credits: Apptopia
Image Credits: Apptopia
A report from Apptopia has found the number of mobile applications describing themselves as “web3” apps has continued to grow from 2020 through 2022. So far this year, the number of web3 apps available for download is growing nearly 5x faster compared with 2021, and year-to-date, the number of apps available for download is up by 88%.
The firm analyzed data across the App Store and Google play, looking for any apps with “web3” in the title, subtitle or app description. Many of these apps — around 46% — were those in the finance space. This has to do with the large number of mobile wallets, NFT apps and the like now crowding the app stores. Much smaller percentages were found in apps in the social, tools/utilities, business and gaming categories.
However, despite the growth in the availability of web3 apps, the number of downloads the apps are seeing seems to ebb and flow, Apptopia noted. In addition, it found that NFT marketplace apps OpenSea and Veve were down 90%+ off their highs, and the top 50 crypto apps have seen downloads fall 64% since November. Meanwhile, web3 apps seeing growth currently include the circular economy app Twig and running app STEPN, which lets users collect NFTs by running outdoors.
In what’s becoming a regular occurrence, it was another tumultuous week for the deal that would see Elon Musk acquire Twitter.
This week, Musk decided to put up more of his own money for Twitter — just days after it looked like the tech exec was trying to get out of the deal by alleging Twitter lied about the percentage of bots on the platform. In a filing, Musk said his personal financial commitment was now $33.5 billion, up from $27.25 billion. The Telsa and SpaceX exec had previously said he would execute a margin loan of $12.5 billion against his other holdings, like his Tesla shares. But Tesla shares had seen a sharp decline after news of Musk’s acquisition plans for Twitter back in April, potentially prompting this move.
If you’re sick of all the deal shenanigans, you’re not alone. A group of Twitter shareholders has now sued Musk, alleging he manipulated Twitter stock for his own benefit throughout the course of buying the company.
The suit says Musk’s complaint about the percentage of bots on the platform was likely an attempt to drive down the price of the deal. It also cites issues with how he claimed the deal was “on hold,” when there was no such mechanism in place to stop the deal from proceeding; and it points out that Musk delayed filing a disclosure when his stake in the company exceeded 5%, allowing him to buy shares at a discount, in violation of securities law.
While a select group of Twitter investors is behind the lawsuit, it’s open to any shareholders who are looking to receive financial compensation from the Twitter chaos the deal has caused.
Twitter investors sue Elon Musk over acquisition shenanigans
Musk’s move to buy Twitter is certainly shaking things up. This week former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey exited the board of directors. And, at Wednesday’s shareholder meeting, the board voted to oust board member — and Musk ally — Egon Durban, CEO of private equity firm Silver Lake. Durban has backed Musk’s companies, including SolarCity, before it was acquired by Tesla. The FT pointed out that the two biggest shareholder advisers, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, cited concerns with Durban serving on too many other boards. (The FT said he was on seven this year, but a Twitter SEC filing said it was six.)
Twitter then rejected Durban’s resignation, two days after shareholders had blocked his re-election. The company said that Durban likely failed to receive shareholder support because of his director role on so many other boards (six), but Durban had agreed to reduce the number to five by May 25, 2023.
Also during the shareholder meeting, Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal faced a number of questions about the deal, what it means for free speech on Twitter, content moderation and other issues. But Twitter declined to answer questions about the deal and said work at Twitter was continuing as usual. (Which hardly seems true, given the string of firings and exec departures following Dorsey’s exit and Musk’s takeover attempt!).
Twitter’s troubles also extended beyond the acquisition, as this week Twitter also agreed to pay a $150 million fine as part of its settlement with regulators over user data privacy. The FTC and Department of Justice said that between May 2013 and September 2019, Twitter asked users for personal information — including phone numbers and emails — to secure their accounts, but then used that information to target users with ads. More than 140 million Twitter users were impacted, the FTC said.
Image Credits: Apple
Image Credits: Apple
Image Credits: Niantic
Image Credits: Niantic
Image Credits: Snap
Image Credits: Snap
Image Credits: TikTok
Image Credits: TikTok
Image Credits: Snapchat screenshot via Watchful
Image Credits: Snapchat screenshot via Watchful
Image Credits: Instagram
Image Credits: Instagram
Image Credits: Sensor Tower
Image Credits: Sensor Tower
The new Real Tone filters in Google Photos are starting to roll out today on Android, iOS, and web. These filters were designed by professional image makers to work well across skin tones, so you can choose the filter that reflects your style. pic.twitter.com/UwTS4KIodY
— Google Photos (@googlephotos) May 24, 2022
Image Credits: Bumble screenshot via Watchful
Image Credits: Bumble screenshot via Watchful
Image Credits: data.ai
Image Credits: data.ai
Image Credits: Sony (opens in a new window)
Image Credits: Sony (opens in a new window)
Image Credits: Proton
Image Credits: Proton
🤝 Take-Two completed its $12.7 billion acquisition of mobile games giant Zynga. The deal saw Zynga shareholders receive $3.50 in cash and 0.0406 shares of Take-Two common stock per share of Zynga common stock.
💰 AR mobile game maker Jadu raised $36 million in a Series A round led by Bain Capital Crypto to accelerate its work building out an AR game featuring 3D NFT avatars from Deadfellaz, CyberKongz, FLUFs, VOIDs, ChibiApes, Meebits and other collections. The company has raised $45 million+ to date.
The near-term future of the Metaverse is AR not VR and @JaduAVAs is building it.
1/13 – 🧵 pic.twitter.com/Q3kHEgVRMC
— AJM • Jadu (@AsadJMalik) April 23, 2022
💰 Friendly Apps just closed on a $3 million seed round, pre-product, from BoxGroup, Weekend Fund, Shrug Capital, Day One Ventures, Betaworks Ventures, SRB Ventures, 305 Ventures, CoreVentures and other angels. The startup hails from longtime engineer and product designer Michael Sayman, who has been building apps since he was a kid, landing him roles at Facebook, Google, Roblox, and, most recently, Twitter. Having joined Facebook at just 17, he’s often been tasked with developing products aimed at a teenage audience. Now he’s planning to leverage his understanding of what users want from their apps with his own startup.
💰 Circles, an app that offers online group therapy via video chat, raised $16.5 million in a Series A round led by Zeev Ventures. Also participating was Lior Ron, head of Uber Freight, along with existing investors NFX, Flint Capital and Sir Ronald Cohen.
💰 Pokémon GO maker Niantic disclosed its first two investments. The company said it has backed TRIPP, an award-winning leader in XR wellness, and music metaverse startup Pixelynx, from musicians deadmau5 and Plastikman. The latter’s first mobile game is called Elynxir and is using Niantic’s new Lightship AR platform to combine musical experiences and AR. Deal terms weren’t disclosed.
