Three Application Predictions for 2010
As 2009 comes to a close, 2010 will usher in some fantastic changes for applications. I am making three application predictions for next year, showing the application landscape’s constant shift and change to meet new user and market demands:
- The Rise of Social Security Apps
As phishing, worms and viruses become more prevalent on social networks (see: Koobface and Mikeyy); I predict in 2010, we will see a rise of applications and browser add-ons dedicated to improve security on social networks. These apps will function as scouts, preemptively warning users to impending dangers, such as worms that intend to gather sensitive information available on your social network profile. The need for these types of apps is clear and would provide a great protective benefit to consumers. - Location finds its way to Desktop Apps
There are many great social location-based services gaining momentum with users as of lately: Gowalla, Foursquare, and Loopt are just a few. Yes, these services are generally best rendered on a mobile device. But I predict, in 2010, that many of these services will create auxiliary desktop apps. Presence on the desktop would offer an enhanced user experience: persistent views into location of friends, trip planning/scheduling, landmark information and media, local event information, management of digital collectibles, and account management options. - Application Indexing Improves
I’ve written previously about how application indexes should improve. These services, such as Wakoopa, catalog desktop applications and their related usage data. I predict these services will improve greatly in 2010. Currently, their user base skews heavily towards the tech-savvy audience. To truly index the world of applications, these services need to gain acceptance from all demographics and I predict they will crack this nut next year. These services will then grow in popularity on a scale comparable to mobile app stores, such as Apple’s App Store and Google Android’s Market.
So there you have it; three application predictions for 2010. But surely there’s more than just this. What predictions do you have for the application landscape next year? Be bold and leave your predictions in the comments!
Eric Montag, Product Manager, W3i, LLC
Eric is a Pragmatic Marketing Certified Product Manager and uses his experience in internet marketing to lead the charge in product research, planning, and execution from both a consumer and business standpoint.
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December 30th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
I think anything on mobile will be huge in 2010. We have seen a glimpse of this in 2009 but more is to come. I think Android will continue to gain market share especially with the Nexus One coming out from Google.
It will be fun to watch!
December 30th, 2009 at 7:35 pm
This isn’t an app prediction, but I am predicting that the Apple tablet devices fails.
I agree with all three of your predictions.