The mobile app ecosystem is often referred to as a “fragmented ecosystem”. But what does this term really mean? To answer this, let’s look at what the word fragmented means. A fragment is generally considered a broken piece of a whole or
The mobile app ecosystem is often referred to as a “fragmented ecosystem”. But what does this term really mean? To answer this, let’s look at what the word fragmented means. A fragment is generally considered a broken piece of a whole or at least a larger fragment. Consider now, that the “whole” we just mentioned is the mobile app ecosystem. This ecosystem includes Android, iOS and other mobile platforms that are used for mobile app development. Since these are separate platforms and cannot be cross-compatible or interconnected, they can be viewed as separate fragments in the vast ecosystem of mobile app development. Hence the term, fragmented ecosystem.
You may be wondering why the mobile app ecosystem is fragmented?
The answer may be simpler than you think. You know that mobile apps are basically software that can be downloaded on mobile phones and smart phones. Much like games and programs on a PC. They can be installed or uninstalled at the users whim. But, much like all software they carry the weight of one major drawback.
Mobile apps are designed around a specific platform just like software. To put this all into perspective, compare this to an anti-virus software. The same type of software that works on a Windows OS will not work on a MAC and vice versa. In order to download an identical antivirus program that’s on a Windows PC, you need to find a version of the file with a.dmg extension that labels the software as MAC compatible. The same file has a.exe extension meaning it is for use with Windows. Likewise when developing an identical app for use on an iPhone and an Android you need different programming from their respective application stores.
If we look at the ever changing mobile technology market today, we will run across at least a half dozen mobile platforms all complete with their own app stores. These mobile platforms are the operating systems that power each individual platform. The major platforms are Android, iOS, Windows, Blackberry OS, and Tizen. Most smartphones around the world run on one of these platforms or some form of a modified version of these. However, as long as the core of the platform is the same, those minor modifications don’t really matter a whole lot. For example, if an Android device has been modified and customized for use on the HTC Sense with a new user interface or a new skin slapped onto it, this has no affect on the app store and therefore Android powered apps will still work as per usual. It’s no different 