Almost one-third (32 percent) of top iOS apps could be developed by taking advantage of web code such as HTML5, according to ABI Research.

But Aapo Markkanen, senior analyst for the company, warned: “In many big-ticket categories the majority of titles are distinctly native. Games, productivity, utilities and music apps won’t have much to gain from HTML5 anytime soon”.

ABI said that with the “rapid downfall” of Adobe’s Flash technology, audio and video capabilities are the fastest growing HTML5 element.

The company notes that while in 2014 the installed base of mobile devices with HTML5-capable browsers will reach almost two billion, there will be a huge difference between the adoption rates of various key features.

ABI observed that “there is a tendency to view HTML5 as a single, monolithic technology, whereas in reality it is a mix of several inter-related, but not necessarily interdependent, features”.

It also said that “commentators still too often treat app categories uniformly, advocating or dismissing the whole industry’s web potential based on how HTML5 can be leveraged in certain niche areas”.