Mobile Application Growth Will Feed Advertising Revenue, Profit

Americans' thirst for more applications for their hand-held devices will overcome any resistance they have to mobile advertisements, creating a profit opportunity for both applications publishers and operating-system owners, according to two separate reports published this week.

Smartphone owners have an average of 27 applications on their hand-held devices, up from 22 applications last December, with the typical Apple Inc. (AAPL) iPhone owner having 41 applications, Nielsen said today, citing a poll of more than 4,000 mobile subscribers.

More than 60% of those who'd downloaded an application within the past month downloaded a games application, while at least half of those people downloaded either a weather or maps/search application, according to Nielsen.

Facebook was the most popular application among iPhone and Research In Motion's (RIMM) BlackBerry users, while Android owners were slightly more attracted to Google's (GOOG) Maps application.

Meanwhile, as smartphone users become more dependent on applications, they will be more willing to put up with mobile advertisements, creating an opportunity for marketing companies and applications developers, Parks Associates said in a separate report today.

About half of consumers between 18 and 54 years old say they don't mind or are indifferent to mobile ads, while those older than 54 or slightly less receptive, Parks Associates said.

As a result, North American mobile applications, which will generate $2 billion in revenue this year, will throw off $4 billion in profit by 2014, while inner-application mobile advertising revenue will hit $860 million that year, according to Parks.