Arcade Fire boosts HTML5 developer demand as BlackBerry wanes

Demand for IT professionals with HTML5 and Android skills rose faster than for the iPhone during the second quarter of 2011 as Google's mobile platform continues to dominate the IT landscape, according to figures from outsourcing recruitment site Freelancer.com

The figures showed that, despite nine per cent growth for iPhone-related work from 2,739 jobs in Q1 to 2,985 in Q2, Android work rose 20 per cent from 1,419 to 1,702 jobs, placing Android skills in the top five most sought-after in the country.

Another huge growth area for IT professionals was HTML5, with jobs listed on the site rising from 604 in the first quarter of 2011 to 807 in the second, an increase of 34 per cent. Possibly as a result of this growth, Flash work dropped 10 per cent to 3,095 jobs.

Freelancer.com suggested that some of this growth was down to Canadian band Arcade Fire, which produced a video for its hit single The Wilderness Downtown that ran on HTML5 in the Google Chrome browser, further boosting interest in the technology.

Other growth areas included the iPad, which rose 11 per cent to 1,305 jobs, and Facebook fan page development, which rose from 4,297 to 4,622, up eight per cent, as businesses expanded their online presence.

Matt Barrie, chief executive of Freelancer.com, suggested that the growth of new technology areas shows that businesses are looking to take advantage of new online opportunities.

"Online work continues to boom and we've set the pace for an explosive year. We had an amazing Q1 as more and more people kicked off the new year by building new businesses or bettering their current business using online freelancers," he said.

While these were the growth areas, there were clear declines in jobs for the BlackBerry platform, which fell six per cent from 526 to 497 jobs in spite of the launch of the PlayBook tablet.

Demand for Microsoft skills also slumped in Q2, with Windows CE down 42 per cent, Windows Desktop down 30 per cent and Windows Mobile down 16 per cent.