• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, December 13, 2010

As the number of mobile app downloads spirals up, from 10.9 billion worldwide in 2010 to 76.9 billion in 2014, so will revenue in the category, to $35 billion in four years, according to a new forecast from market research firm IDC. It expects apps to find their way into even more devices in the coming years including connected TVs and by extension, the connected home itself.

One of the most salient aspects of the rise of apps to date has been their ability to apply to a smartphone into everything from a physical trainer to a menu planner to a social networking tool. And an "Angry Birds" game player. That trend will continue. "Mobile app developers will 'appify' just about every interaction you can think of in your physical and digital worlds," notes Scott Ellison, VP, of mobile and wireless research at IDC. Read more here.