Pizza parlors grab slice of Android app market

Back in September, 2010, Domino's Pizza in the UK launched an app for the iPhone that allowed customers to places orders and track them from their mobile devices.

That app generated over $16million in sales and has been downloaded more than half a million times.

The Android version, released this month, is fully transactional and has all the features of the iPhone app including GPS tracking of orders plus features that allow users to customize their order and enter promotions for coupons and discounts.

"Investing in this type of technology is now paying dividends for us," said Simon Wallis, sales and marketing director for Domino's.

"With sales of Android phones reported to be up 810% year on year*, we're excited about what the future holds with the launch of our new app, which will allow even more pizza lovers to order on the move."

Following on from their success with an iPhone app Pizza Hut in the UK is also set to launch an Android app. The restaurant chain, which also does deliveries, was one of the first in their segment to launch an app back in 2009. That app generated sales in excess of $1million in the first three months.

Market research firm Gartner last month revealed forecasts that show the Android operating system will power almost half (49%) of the world's smartphones next year, with Apple maintaining its position as the second biggest platform.

Tags: Android, iPhone, mobile app, mobile marketing, mobile platform, mobile technology