Apple Created Twice as Many New Million-Dollar Publishers in 2018 as Google

Analytics firm Sensor Tower has used its latest app publisher data to compare how many new million-dollar publishers App Store and Google Play are minting each year. Turns out Apple created twice as many new million-dollar publishers as Google Play in 2018, with 164 publishers earning their first $1 million in net revenue on the U.S. App Store.

Sensor

The source notes that the number of publishers with their first $1 million or greater year on the U.S. App Store grew by approximately 15% in 2018 over the previous year when 143 publishers had achieved the milestone.

Google Play, where 88 publishers earned their first $1 million in net revenue this year, increased its number of new million-dollar publishers by 24% year-over-year.


It’s not surprising that 54 of the 164 new million-dollar-plus publishers on the U.S. App Store—about 33 percent—were focused on the Games category, given that it has contributed roughly 60 percent of all revenue on the platform so far this year. Newcomer FoxNext Games, publisher of Marvel Strike Force, led this category netting more than $15 million so far in 2018.

What did stand out, however, is that the percentage of new Games category publishers on iOS declined by 10 percent from 2017 and shifted to other categories, including Lifestyle and Health & Fitness, which grew their numbers from 5 and 6 percent to 10 and 12 percent of the total, respectively, from last year.

Looking at Sensor Tower’s findings, it becomes clear that Apple will continue to control its standing as the most lucrative platform for mobile developers in 2019 as well.

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