The global appetite for mobile applications will explode over the next two years, new research shows.

A study done for Getjar, the world’s second biggest app store, said the market will grow to $17.5bn (£12bn) in the next two years.

The study claimed downloads would climb from 7bn last year to 50bn by 2012 - a 92% year-on-year increase.

It found there had been a gold rush with the number of app stores rising from four before 2008 to 48 today.

To read this BBC News report in full, see:
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8571210.stm