DSpace@MIT

Thesis: S.M. in Engineering and Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division, System Design and Management Program, 2014.163Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.Includes bibliographical references (pages 64-67).Executive Summary: This thesis is a brief study on the mobile app ecosystem providing insights to application developers to embark on the journey of app development and distribution. The methodology followed in the study is a mix of company search, online reports & whitepaper analysis of firms in this space and finally inputs from founders of firms driving this space and developers who have experienced this journey themselves. By breaking this whole journey into a 5 staged approach an application developer is better informed of aspects to be considered right from planning & development to distribution and brand building. Each stage compilation provides insights on what suits different types of applications accompanied with an analysis of the firms active in the particular area and the benefits they have to offer.