Cost of App Marketing Continues to Soar in July Indicating a Blockbuster Year for Mobile Advertising

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwired - Aug 27, 2014) - Despite month-to-month ebbs and flows, an analysis of mobile app marketing competition and costs from 2012-2014 by Fiksu, Inc. (www.fiksu.com) shows relentless increases. Instead of expected summer slowdowns, the Fiksu Cost Per Loyal User (CPLU) Index came in at $1.97 for July, its second-highest point in the four-year history of the Fiksu Indexes, representing an increase of 9 percent year-over-year.

Along with CPLU, the Cost Per Install (CPI) Indexes also rose, surging up 44 percent year-over-year on Android (although down 9 percent from June), and up 16 percent over 2013 and 24 percent from last month on iOS. At the same time, Fiksu's July App Store Competitive Index, which measures aggregate daily download volume among the top 200 ranked iOS apps, increased from June's 6.1M to 6.2M -- representing a 2 percent increase from June and 7 percent growth year-over-year.

The Cost Per Launch Index, which tracks the costs of driving engagement from mobile users, showed a 16 percent year-over-year increase on iOS and a 13 percent increase on Android. Increased app usage -- potentially from users with more time and inclination to engage with apps during vacations or other downtime -- may have helped keep those numbers from increasing even further.

Significantly, between 2012 and 2014, the Cost Per Loyal User Index has risen steadily, hitting an all-time high last month of $2.23, making June the most expensive month ever for loyal user acquisition with July following on its heels.

July also marked the first month of the full availability of Twitter's Mobile App Promotion products. While early results indicate Twitter is on the path to be a major player for app install ads, it's too early to conclusively report data. However, key metrics are in the same ballpark -- and in some cases better -- than Facebook mobile app ads.

"The July Fiksu Indexes reflected the typical slowdown of summer behavior but confirmed that underlying app marketing costs are still rising consistently year-over-year," said Micah Adler, CEO of Fiksu. "However, marketers need to be sharpening their strategies in readiness for the next few months. In addition to powerful new channels like Twitter, a new iPhone and iOS always shake up the app marketing landscape."

August and September Index data will likely deliver an influx of findings from new devices -- and app installs -- ripe for marketers to analyze and get an early start on test ad efforts, in advance of the holiday rush. In addition, major movement is likely in the iOS ecosystem with debuts of new iPhones and iOS 8 expected in the coming months, potentially similar to last year's iPhone 5/iOS 7 unveiling.

For Fiksu's full July Index analysis, visit http://www.fiksu.com/resources/fiksu-indexes#analysis.

About Fiksu
 Fiksu is the leading provider of mobile marketing products. A data-driven mobile ad tech company, the power of Fiksu is fueled by information assets from over 3 billion app installs and 3.5 trillion marketing events tracked across 1.7 billion devices. The company's patent-pending Programmatic Mobile Demand Platform applies intelligent technology to proprietary big data to master ALL the challenges of mobile advertising -- including tracking, optimization, media buying and integration. This cohesive approach spans the entire mobile ecosystem and ultimately delivers the best marketing performance. Additionally, Fiksu offers FreeMyApps®, the world's largest app discovery platform where users are rewarded. Based in Boston, Mass., Fiksu is venture-backed by Qualcomm Ventures and Charles River Ventures. More at www.fiksu.com, @Fiksu, and on the Fiksu blog.