UK App Industry to be Worth £30bn by 2025

The app development industry will be worth more than £30bn to the UK economy by 2025, according to a new report.

VisonMobile says that the UK app business, which includes the proceeds of apps and app related services, was worth £2.9bn (€3.6bn, $4.9bn) in 2013, and it believes that it will exceed £4bn this year before rising to £5.5bn in 2015.

It is expected that the growth will steadily continue in the coming years at an average rate of 22% annually until the industry exceeds £30bn by 2025.

VisionMobile says that there are at least 8,000 companies in the UK involved in app development in some way, employing approximately 380,000 people. With the rate that the industry is growing, it predicts that there will be roughly 30,000 jobs created in the next year.

The majority (83%) of app developers are self-taught and can command an average salary of £47,000 – over £20,000 above the UK average.

However, it is typically a male dominated industry with females filling just 8% of app development jobs in the UK

As with many other industries, London and the South East of England are the driving forces behind the app industry.

The report says that 31% of app companies are based in the Greater London area, and slightly less than a quarter are situated within the South East region.

The UK has been one of the world's most prolific recipients when it comes to smartphones and tablets, which explains why the industry is booming on these shores.

By the end of the year, it is expected that the penetration of smartphones and tablets will reach an astonishing 74% according to the report.

"The UK has gathered a lot of momentum in the past two years and the government has been visibly supportive of the startup economy, introducing several incentives and investment in infrastructure," the report says.

"However, there are several areas where more work needs to be done in order to sustain this momentum: continuing tax incentives, providing affordable training, even at an early age, cutting the red tape for fledging startups, educating entrepreneurs about funding resources and support schemes."