Are Mobile Apps Eroding The Web?

It wasn't that long ago that developers wondered if a high-end web browser could eventually replace a traditional operating system. Google Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) built Chrome OS on the belief that this was not only possible but preferable to alternative methods.

"Speed, simplicity and security are the key aspects of Google Chrome OS," Google wrote in its blog on July 7, 2009. "We're designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds. The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web."

That dream was built on the promise of high-speed Internet and cheap laptops, but the concept hasn't really taken off. While Chrome OS was initially an online-only operating system, Google eventually added a few offline features.

Even with those adjustments, Chrome OS' popularity pales in comparison to Android, Google's operating system for mobile devices. Both Android and iOS have hundreds of thousands of downloadable applications, many of which are free or sell for a couple bucks. That, combined with Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL)'s clever branding (software applications suddenly became "apps"), transformed software into a must-have feature.

"It is rather ironic," Mitchell Reichgut, CEO of Jun Group (an ad platform that gets consumers to engage with branded content), told Benzinga. "Listen, you tap that app and bang, your content is ready for you. Whereas on the Web you have to type out a URL, it's clunky [and] it takes a long time to load. The degrees of convenience are so important for the human race and I think that's why you see [apps taking over]."

Related Link: 22 Fintech Apps Coming To Apple Watch

Forced Upgrades

Though it may have been impossible for any developer to create a Web-based OS that could replace Windows, the concept had one promising feature: seamless upgrades. In a Web-specific world, users wouldn't have to download individual upgrades for each program or the OS. Best of all, they wouldn't be forced to buy new devices prematurely because they are no longer supported by developers. Apps are not nearly as kind.

"You give up a lot in order to get [the] convenience [of apps]," said Reichgut. "We've all decided that a free and open Web is less important than having an 'instant play' experience. We're playing in Apple's or Google's backyard now and it's their rules. That's just one of the things you give up."

Disclosure: At the time of this writing, Louis Bedigian had no position in the equities mentioned in this report.