The omnipresence of devices capable of running mHealth apps (58%) is the biggest driver for the growth of the mHealth market by the mHealth app publisher community. User and patient demand (43%) come in second.

According to research2guidance’s 4th mHealth App Developer Economics 2014 report, the rise of mHealth apps goes hand in hand with the upcoming patient-centered care models (39%), where apps are supposed to empower patients to take a more active role in their treatment process.

Interestingly enough other factors, which are often cited in the media as fundamental for the slow development of the mHealth app market, are only seen as hygiene factors.On the other hand, the mHealth app market faces many obstacles such as lack of data security (34%) and standards (30%), as well as discoverability and the resistance from traditional healthcare providers to adopt new technologies.

Interestingly enough, other factors which are often cited in the media as fundamental for the slow development of the mHealth app market, are only seen as hygiene factors. These include the lack of quality clinical studies or a clear regulatory framework, specific clinical requirements and app development costs. Neither of these factors prevents the majority of today’s mHealth app publishers to believe in the success of the mHealth market.

mHealth app publishers are indifferent regarding the existence of a regulatory framework, and the app development costs are neither seen as a barrier nor a driver of the market. In general, mHealth app publishers report budgets for a single mHealth app project going from $20,000 to $50,000, on average. There are apps out there which cost much more and the total cost also increases with the number of platforms an app will be published on…

Additional detail are available from the full 4th mHealth App Developer Economics 2014 report; you can download it from here.