Banned in India, PUBG Mobile, TikTok in most downloaded apps list

A recent report by an analytics firm shows that the popular battle royale PUBG Mobile app was the top-grossing game in overall revenue while video sharing service TikTok was the top-grossing app in overall revenue as well as on the Apple App Store.

Both PUBG Mobile and TikTok have made it to the top and their popularity shows no sign of decreasing despite rivals coming up with new features. (REUTERS)

Popular video-sharing service TikTok and battle royale game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (or PUBG Mobile) are the top-grossing app and game respectively in the world for Q3 2021, according to data published by analytics firm Sensor Tower in its latest report. Spending on apps has increased year-over-year, and these apps saw an increase in revenue collected in Q3. It is worth noting that both TikTok and PUBG Mobile remain banned in the country, along with a number of other apps that were removed from the Play Store and Apple App Store in the country last year over security concerns.

According to the report by Sensor Tower, which tracked spending in apps over the third quarter, TikTok saw an increase of 41 percent year-on-year this quarter, while PUBG Mobile grew 11 percent year-on-year. The spending on premium apps, subscriptions and in-app purchases doesn't end there, however. The Google Play Store and Apple App Store together saw spending grow over 15 percent year-on-year to a whopping $33.6 billion. Both the App Store (13.2 percent) and the Play Store (18.6 percent) saw an increase in spending, even though spending on iOS was higher at $21.5 billion compared to Android at $12.1 billion, according to the report.

Sensor Tower's latest report shows global consumer spending in mobile apps and games increased 15.1 percent YoY in Q3 2021.  (Sensor Tower)

Sensor Tower's latest report shows global consumer spending in mobile apps and games increased 15.1 percent YoY in Q3 2021.  (Sensor Tower)

While TikTok was the highest-grossing app in overall revenue as well as on the App Store, the top app on the Play Store for Q3 2021 was the app for Google One. The top 10 apps for overall revenue include Piccoma manga reader, YouTube, Google One, Disney+, Tinder, Tencent Video, iQIYI, Line Manga, and HBO Max. However, TikTok also managed to remain the most downloaded app in the third quarter, beating apps like Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

Meanwhile for gaming, PUBG Mobile was the highest-grossing game for overall revenue with spending climbing 11 percent. This allowed the game to beat rival Genshin Impact, Honor of Kings, Roblox and Pokemon Go. It is worth noting that Sensor Tower also includes downloads and earnings from Game for Peace, which is the Chinese authorised version of PUBG Mobile with modifications for local laws. Games downloads were down this quarter, however, compared to last year's period, and games like My Talking Angela 2, Subway Surfers Count Masters and Garena Free Fire were some of the most download games in Q3 2021, according to the report.