The popularity of smartphones has also created business opportunities outside of the development of operating systems and the construction of device hardware. The creation of smartphone software applications, or apps, has become a multibillion-dollar industry.11

Apps are downloaded to a smartphone via a store, which is controlled by the company that has created the operating system that the smartphone uses. In many cases, apps are free to download, but in some cases, there is a fee. Application developers may include advertisements in the app content once opened or may sell products through the app.

One of the major beneficiaries of the rise in smartphone adoption has been social networks, such as Meta (META), formerly Facebook. Being able to log into a social network account from a smartphone has increased the number of hours that people spend on the network, which has dramatically increased network revenue. The behavior of smartphone users has, in some cases, been the driving factor in the changes to social networks that were once dominated by people using their personal computers for access.