App downloads in December once again broke records, with downloads of the top 200 free apps in the iOS App Store growing to 9.2m, a rise of 44 per cent on the previous years figures.

The record breaking December represented a 14 per cent rise on the previous month, which was also a record breaker with 8.1m downloads, as was Octobers 7.8m. The figures come from Fiksus App Store Competitive Index, which tracks the average aggregate daily download value.

However, December also saw a rise in Fiksus Cost Per Loyal User Index, with the cost of acquiring regular users rising 33 per cent from November to $2.10 (£1.40) in December, a 20 per cent increase year-on-year. Cost Per Install was split quite significantly between games and apps, with game costs decreasing by around 10 per cent across iOS and Android, while app install costs rose around 44 per cent.

“Reaching a new milestone of 9.2m app downloads – up over a million from last month – is an indicator of what we call the new reality of apps,” said Micah Adler, CEO of Fiksu. “Consumer demand across iOS and Android is rising, which draws significant attention from major brands who are putting cost pressure on the games and other mobile-first apps.

“We expect these factors will not only elevate costs fro marketers, but also drive an evolution of marketing strategies. In 2015, just buying mobile ads wont be enough to drive usage – app marketers will need robust strategies based on consumer data and precision targeting to find the right users for their apps.”