CARDIFF, UK: Vacancies for developers with Android skills have rocketed by 424 percent in the space of a year, according to specialist IT recruitment consultancy IntaPeople.

Such rapid growth shows that it makes commercial sense for IT professionals to sharpen their development abilities on both the Android and iPhone platforms, the company has said.

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Using figures sourced by IT Jobs Watch, IntaPeople compared the total number of permanent job adverts citing Android skills in the three months to 31 January 2011 with the same period 12 months earlier.

Rob Samuel, IT manager at IntaPeople, said: "Given the substantial increase in the sale of Android handsets in the past year, it is not surprising that more businesses are recruiting individuals who possess the ability to develop for this platform. In the past, developing applications for Android phones may have been perceived as something of a hobby, but these figures prove that it actually makes commercial sense to improve on these skills."

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Samuel added, "We fully expect demand for these professionals to continue to rise over the next few years, helped by the increasing popularity of the iPad and the introduction of rival tablets such as the Android-powered Motorola Xoom."

According to the release, demand for developers with Android experience grew at a much faster rate than for those with iPhone expertise, which rose by a more moderate 263 percent.

However, the overall number of iPhone-related positions remained higher, with 1,239 jobs advertised between November 2010 and January 2011, compared to 1,047 for Android.

The average salary for a developer with Android experience was found to be £45,000, while those with iPhone skills can expect to receive £42,500.