Apple has shared a new study done by Professor Viswanath Pingali from IIM Ahmedabad, showing how much the App Store has helped India’s economy. According to Apple, the App Store in India supported ₹44,447 crores (around $5.31 billion) in sales and billings. Interestingly, more than 94% of this money went directly to app developers and businesses — without Apple taking a commission.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said, “The App Store has been like an economic miracle for developers in India and worldwide. We’re happy to support their work. This study shows how strong and vibrant India’s app economy is, and we’re committed to helping developers grow and succeed.”
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The study, called “The Apple Ecosystem in India: Its Value to Developers and Users,” highlights several key points:
- Since the App Store launched 15 years ago, Indian developers have found many ways to earn money through apps like games, health and fitness, lifestyle, and utilities.
- In 2024, almost 80% of Indian developers’ earnings came from users outside India.
- About 87% of Indian developers had their apps available on multiple App Store locations worldwide.
- Indian apps were downloaded more than 755 million times in 2024 — double the number from five years ago.
- Indian-made apps ranked among the top 100 most-downloaded apps in 70 different countries.
The earnings of small developers in India also grew by 74% between 2021 and 2024. Apple’s Small Business Program, which offers lower commission rates, helped many small developers grow faster.
To support developers even more, Apple has opened a Developer Center in Bengaluru, where developers get hands-on training and access to over 250,000 tools and frameworks like HealthKit, Metal, and Core ML.
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The report also mentioned Apple’s strong security efforts:
- Between 2020 and 2023, Apple stopped over $7 billion worth of potentially fraudulent transactions, including $1.8 billion in 2023 alone.
- Apple rejected more than 1.7 million app submissions that didn’t meet its privacy, security, and quality standards.
