A new study from TechNet estimates that close to half a million jobs have been created in the United States as a result of the "App Economy." This is up from zero in 2007 when Apple introduced the iPhone.
The analysis was conducted for TechNet by Dr. Michael Mandel of South Mountain Economics, LLC. Mandel reached his estimate of 466,000 jobs by including positions at 'pure' app firms such as Zynga and other app-related jobs from the likes of AT&T, Amazon and Electronic Arts. App infrastructure jobs at core firms like Google, Apple and Facebook were also factored into the study.
Not surprising, the top App Economy jobs are found in tech-centric or heavily populated areas like New York City, San Francisco and San Jose. California tops the list of App Economy states but more than 66 percent of apps originate from outside of The Golden State. Florida, Georgia and Illinois were specifically mentioned as hotbeds for app creators.
In addition to jobs, apps have created substantial revenue for developers. According to one estimate, apps generated nearly $20 billion in revenue in 2011.
It's all pretty impressive when you consider that the App Economy is only four years old and it comes as no surprise that the economy is still growing at a rapid pace. The term "app" was even named the word of the year by the American Dialect Society in 2010.