24 hours later, iOS 7.1 adoption hits 5.9 percent of active devices in North America

iOS 7.1 adoption rate (Chitika, 24 hours)

In its first 24 hours in the wild, Apple’s new iOS 7.1 software is now on 5.9 percent of active devices in North America, research firm Chitika reported Tuesday. The figure was derived fromĀ “tens of millions” of iOS-based online ad impressions generated within the Chitika Ad Network in theĀ United States and CanadaĀ from March 9 through March 11, 2014.

By comparison, the number is comparable to the crucialĀ iOS 7.0.6 update which fixed a nasty SSL security exploit, with iOS 7.0.6 users generating six percent of all iOS 7.0.6 traffic 24 hours post-release (or a niceĀ 13.3 percent adoption in 48 hours)…

Chitika writes:

At 5.9 percent, North American iOS 7.1 adoption has progressed at a very similar rate to iOS 7.0.6. 24 hours following that release, iOS 7.0.6 users generated six percent of total iOS traffic, averaging to about five percent over the course of the full day.

Considering Appleā€™s update notification strategy, along with these two data points, it seems likely that future minor iOS 7 version updates will experience highly comparable levels of adoption.

For an even better understanding of how iOS 7.1 adoption rate compares to previous iOS releases,Ā iOS 6 peaked at more than fifteen percent of all web traffic on Chitika’s mobile ad network 24 hours into its release.

The discrepancy between iOS 6 and iOS 7.1 adoption rates could be explained with today’s jailbreak situation. As you know, people with jailbroken devices are wise not to upgrade to iOS 7.1 because the software kills their jailbreak and prevents downgrading.

Another thing to factor in: adoption rates of minor OS updates – and iOS 7.1 is a minor update in the grand scheme of things – have traditionally been less dramatic than those of its major-version counterparts.