Washington, D.C. (October 4, 2012) – Pennsylvania ranks as a top state for app industry employment, according to a study released today by CTIA-The Wireless Association® and the Application Developers Alliance. The research, conducted by South Mountain Economics, LLC and entitled “The Geography of the App Economy,” found that application development is responsible for 12,900 jobs in Pennsylvania, with an economic impact of $632 million.
The research profiles Appek, an app development company founded by Scranton residents. The company secured local angel investor funding and was able to take advantage of Pennsylvania economic incentives including as Keystone Innovation Zones and the Keystone Opportunity program. As a result, the company has been able to expand. Similar success stories from local developers abound. appMobi is a provider of development tools and services located in Lancaster.
“While many people think that technical innovation only happens in Silicon Valley, there is a surprising depth of quality engineering talent in Pennsylvania, and appMobi has been fortunate to hire from this pool of skilled developers. We’re not surprised to hear about the high number of app economy jobs in Pennsylvania, and we expect to see this number continue to grow far into the future,” said David Kennedy, CEO of appMobi and member of the Alliance Board.
Nationwide, the app economy has produced 519,000 jobs, according to the study. Developers and related personnel are being hired by companies large and small, from major tech companies to startups and from government agencies to universities. Moreover, the research finds that the app industry is contributing to the economies of every state.
“The app industry is a borderless economic force, providing opportunity across the country–even in places we might not expect. In a challenging economic environment, the app industry has created more than a half million jobs in the five years since Apple’s iPhone launched. This new industry is propelling innovation and jobs in urban centers and rural states. And this is just the beginning,” said Jon Potter, President of the Application Developers Alliance.
The research builds on a February 2012 study completed by South Mountain Economics that measured the total number of app jobs nationwide. Delving deeper with this study, researchers examined help wanted ads across the U.S. to measure the number of app jobs in each state, the states’ App Intensity, and the economic impact of the apps industry.
Read the entire study here (PDF).
About the Application Developers Alliance
The Application Developers Alliance is an industry association dedicated to meeting the unique needs of application developers as creators, innovators, and entrepreneurs. Alliance members include more than 10,000 individual application developers and dozens of companies, investors, and stakeholders in the apps ecosystem.
About CTIA
CTIA-The Wireless Association® (www.ctia.org) is an international organization representing the wireless communications industry. Membership in the association includes wireless carriers and their suppliers, as well as providers and manufacturers of wireless data services and products. CTIA advocates on behalf of its members at all levels of government. The association also coordinates the industry’s voluntary best practices and initiatives, and sponsors the industry’s leading wireless tradeshows. CTIA was founded in 1984 and is based in Washington, DC.
About South Mountain Economics
South Mountain Economics LLC (http://www.southmountaineconomics.com) provides cutting-edge research and consulting on innovation, jobs and economic development. In a data-driven economy, South Mountain Economics shows how to harness better data to create better jobs.
