Top 14 diabetes app publishers capture 65 percent share

BERLIN, GERMANY: Sixty-five percent of all downloads in the diabetes app market are generated by only 14 app publishers. The majority of top publishers are small app developers. The competitive landscape is still fragile.

With the exception of sanofi-aventis, Metronic and Medisana the most successful diabetes app publishers are small technology companies. Some of them have produced medical devices for diabetes tracking but most of them have started their business with the upcoming of the app market after 2008 as pure app developers.

A significant number of diabetes app publishers, not only those in the top 14, developed their solution based on their personal experience with the disease. For most of the top players the initial motivation to publish a diabetes app was to make life easier for themselves, relatives or friends - developing a products only came second.

The competitive landscape in the diabetes app market is still very fragile. According to the new report "Diabetes App Market 2014", the ranking of the top 14 diabetes app publishers are not carved in stone. The overall quality, total download and user numbers are not that high today so that new innovators complying with the best practice standards for diabetes app publishing and a good marketing strategy would not be able to turn the market upside down.

The market share is measured in lifetime downloads of all diabetes apps published by one company of total downloads.

Today Azumio, a venture-backed mHealth app specialist from San Francisco, is the market leader with almost 18 percent market share. It has published two diabetes apps: Glucose Buddy and Blood Sugar Tracker.

Healthcare giant sanofi aventis comes in on second position. The company has a 10 percent market share. sanofi aventis established its market position based on two main diabetes apps: GoMeals and iBGStar.

There are three diabetes app publishers with a market share above 5 percent: Medivo, Distal Thoughts and BHI Technologies. All other market players have a market share of less than 5 percent.

Top diabetes app publishers on average concentrate on one mobile use case, which they implement as a free and as a paid version for Android and iOS. Only a few app publishers support two or three different uses cases.

Diabetes is a global epidemic with significant impact on society and the economy. In 2013 around 8.3 percent (382 million) of the global population were estimated to suffer from diabetes. By 2030, this already high number of diabetes patients is expected to double.

Mobile health solutions are expected to be able to help delivering solutions to help assisting diabetes patients; especially by empowering them to better manage their condition and thus reduce the healthcare costs. Mobile diabetes apps are able to make diabetes patients' lives easier by supporting behaviour changes, facilitating communication and help tracking all relevant diabetes parameters.

Diabetes is the therapeutic area with the highest business potential for mHealth apps - named by 76 percent of mHealth app publishers in research2guidance's yearly mobile health surveys.

Currently, there are over 1,100 iOS and Android specific diabetes apps available on the Apple App Store and Google Play. These apps either target diabetes patients or healthcare professionals who treat diabetes patients.

Mobile diabetes apps are currently only used by 1.2 percent of the target group. Although the market penetration will grow to 7.8 percent by 2018, the market potential is not yet exhausted. The main reason for the low usage is based on a comparatively low sophistication level of diabetes apps compared to the status quo of today's mobile apps.

Over the course of the next five years the market environment for diabetes apps will improve. The usage of diabetes apps within the addressable market will reach 7.8 percent in 2018. (Addressable market is defined as diabetics owning a smartphone or tablet). 24 million people will actively use diabetes apps to manage their health condition in 2018.

The main factors driving penetration rate of diabetes apps up are:

* A steadily growing number of people with diabetes will be reachable via a mobile app.

* Diabetes apps will develop from a stand-alone product to a bundle product. Thus, the mobile app will be a tool to sell devices like plug-in glucometers/wearable sensors) or services like remote monitoring/ consultation.

* With an increasing number of diabetes apps the quality level will raise. Diabetes apps will adopt best practices from other app models.

* With app costs being reimbursed by traditional payers in countries with high yearly treatment costs for a diabetic patient competition amongst app publishers will increase.

* The next five years will raise the diabetes app market to a new level. The chances for a major market breakthrough have improved.