Following a crackdown on clone and spam apps, the App Store has decreased in size for the first time since launching in 2008.

Less is more

The robust and seemingly ever expanding app-verse has finally receded, largely in part from clearing out all the dead wood in the wake of reinforcing Apple’s review guidelines.

According to a new report from Appfigures, the recent drop comes from a technical change requiring app developers to keep their apps updated to the latest 64-bit architecture.

Falling from 2.2 million published iOS apps down to 2.1 million, the App Store has seen a 5% reduction since its final postings of 2016.

Quality over quantity

Meanwhile Google Play has seen a 30% spike in apps in 2017, offering a total of 3.6 million apps. Spam and clone programs may be accounting for this inflation.

Apple will likely be unfazed, as the drop is the result of its efforts to clear out abandoned and outdated products.

Even with Android launching 1.5 million new apps in 2017 compared to Apple’s 755,000, it should be noted that 450,000 were cross-platform.

Are you surprised to hear of the App Store’s decrease? What do you think this means for the future? Let us know what you think in the comments below.