This Is The #1 App In The World Right Now—It Hit 5 Million Downloads In 3.5 Weeks

Alyson Shontell | 5 hours ago | 14,427 | 1

Marvski Draw Something user Marvin Lucas (Marvski) drew this impressive picture of Ice Cube on the app.

Last week we wrote about a new viral app, Draw Something.

Draw Something is like Pictionary with friends on the iPad, iPhone and Android. Ten days after launch it was downloaded 1.2 million times.
Now it's generating 1.2 million downloads per day.
(To learn how Porter's app gained initial traction, read this.)
Just 3.5 weeks old, Draw Something has been downloaded more than 5 million times.
By comparison, Instagram hit 5 million downloads in about 7 months.
Draw Something is currently the #1 free app in the app store. Its premium version is also the #1 paid app in the App Store and costs $0.99.  Its iPad app is the #1 app too. Its also the #1 word game in 26 countries on iOS, and celebrities are addicted.
Last night Vinny Guagagnino from Jersey Shore tweeted about the app, creating a surge in Draw Something downloads.
"When we started three weeks ago users were generating a few drawings per second. Now users are making 500 drawings per second," says Draw Something creator and OMGPOP CEO Dan Porter.
Porter, who says he's never seen a game grow like this, thinks the secret to his app's virality is its social nature.
"There are very few games where you play with other people.  We're seeing entire groups of people, like colleges and universities, joining." He says one in five people in Sweden have Draw Something downloaded on mobile devices.
"When you make a really good game, the other player becomes the content of the game," says Porter. "Pool is a really good example.  When one player goes, all of the balls are rearranged for the next player.  We're essentially recreating a game of pool."
When asked how OMGPOP will ride the viral wave, Porter says he's still figuring that out. "We have allocated the entire staff of 40 to work on this game," says Porter.
While the team is busy adding Draw Something features, like the ability to chat and save photos, Porter has three similar games up his sleeve that will be launching as soon as his servers can handle more traffic.

Check out the hilarious, awesome drawings people are creating and sharing >>

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/this-fast-growing-app-is-only-35-weeks-old-and-it-already-has-5-million-users-2012-2#ixzz1noGErmB9