Alternative app stores also allow targeting of national audiences – for example Tencent MyApp, 360 Mobile Assistant (China), and the SK T-Store (Korea) would be key channels for Western developers and publishers seeking to access those markets. games, utilities, business or one type of user segment). For example, an alternative app store may focus on a specific app genre (e.g. Knowing what audience an app store caters to means developers can upload their app with confidence – there will be users that are interested in that type of app. Launching your app with these different app stores may fit your go-to-market strategy, if you want to reach a niche audience. These new app store environments offer a number of benefits for developers and can form an important part of an app marketing and distribution strategy. At the same time, a host of new alternative app stores have proliferated, driven by the open nature of the Android platform (which allows third party app distribution) and growth of the Chinese app market, where Google Play isn’t officially available but still can be reached. However, as competition on the two major stores has grown, developers have found it increasingly difficult to achieve visibility for their apps on these stores.

The Google Play Store for Android and the Apple App Store for iOS are the two largest distribution channels for mobile apps, offering almost global coverage to a huge potential audience.

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