EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: HTML5 presents a way for developers and brands to address mass market subscribers, beyond the limitations imposed by traditional app stores – with some caveats – according to Ilja Laurs, executive chairman of independent app store GetJar.
Speaking exclusively to Mobile World Live, the executive said: “It is an interesting business lever to develop open business models that don’t rely on the typical app store restrictions, or taxes, or you know force use of specific technology, or billing and so on. The Financial Times is known to have chosen this platform specifically because it’s much more flexible and open as opposed to native.”
HTML5 has gained a significant amount of traction in recent months, including a partnership between Telefonica and Mozilla announced at GSMA Mobile World Congress, with Facebook also a high-profile supporter.
But the technology is not a universal panacea, Laurs said: “So technically I think it’s a very powerful solution, except it doesn’t cover really all the aspects so there will always be a demand for native code because some functionally simply cannot implement HTML5. I think it’s a great technology, I think it will co-exist with native.”
In a wide-ranging interview, Laurs also noted that the profile of developers has changed in recent years, from “really geeky coders that knew Java,” to online companies such as Yahoo and Facebook, through media companies, to brands such as Coca-Cola and Nike. “So to me it closes the loop … like everybody is in the mobile industry,” he continued.
Laurs became executive chairman of GetJar earlier this month, having handed CEO responsibilities to the company’s US-based COO, Chris Dury. The company sees the US market as one of its key growth areas, driven by its presence in the Android apps space.
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