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Apple and Android Gain Smartphone Marketshare at Expense of RIM and Microsoft

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MacRumors

macrumors bot
Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
63,516
30,793



comScore released their latest numbers for the relative market shares of the mobile market. Apple continues to inch upward with 11.2% of total U.S. Mobile Subscribers.

This percent share is up from 9.8% in August and 10.2% in September. Apple's growth was greater than its competitors during this time which covers the introduction of the iPhone 4S. Apple has historically trended well with steady gains in this measure over time. These numbers are for both smartphone and non-smartphone subscribers in the U.S.

apple.jpg

Amongst Smartphone platforms, Google's Android continues to lead at 46.9% over Apple's 28.7% but both platforms grew in the past few months as compared to both Microsoft and RIM.

market.jpg

Microsoft, RIM and Symbian saw continued declines in Smartphone marketshare over the past quarter. The difference in change between Apple and Android's growth is even smaller (1.3 points vs 2.1 points) when comparing the November numbers to September numbers. The iPhone 4S's launch in October should have been covered in these figures.

comScore's data tracks installed user base rather than new handset sales, making it more reflective of real-world usage but slower to respond to shifting market trends than some other studies.

Article Link: Apple and Android Gain Smartphone Marketshare at Expense of RIM and Microsoft
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2011/12/29/apple-and-android-gain-smartphone-marketshare-at-expense-of-rim-and-microsoft/
D

dashiel

macrumors 6502a
Nov 12, 2003
876
0
I don’t think it’s just the 4S or Sprint availability that saw Apple’s growth rate increase while Google’s shrank.

The Droid was the first Android phone to gain any significant market or mindshare, it was released in October of 2009. As we all know the iPhone was only available on AT&T at the time. I don’t think it’s a coincidence a two year contract on an original Droid came to an end the month before the respective increase and decrease in growth rates.

Of course opening up to Sprint and releasing the 4S had an impact.

The iPad halo effect is going to have similar effect. There are plenty of Zombie Androids (people who own Android, without actually using them as smart phones) out there who have or want an iPad. Again come contract time there’s going to be a lot of migration happening as the iOS ecosystem is far stickier than Android.
 
dokujaryu

dokujaryu

macrumors 6502
May 3, 2011
359
12
Irvine, California
I wonder if those numbers include November since the 4S was released in October 14th. Probably. Customer retention is very high for Apple, so it makes sense that users were upgrading.

Even if Apple's market share becomes stagnant and their 97% approval rating gives them 97% retention, I'm pretty sure they'll find a way to pay the bills even if Android takes over all of Windows Phone and RIM's market share.

Edit: I mean include November or simply end when November starts. Again, I assume it does end at the end of November.
 
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rmwebs

macrumors 68040
Apr 6, 2007
3,140
0
Not looking too good for RIM. Whilst its nice to see clearly that the two market leaders are iOS and Android, I'd like to see a third platform there just to force more innovation through competition.
 
EllieV

EllieV

macrumors 6502
Apr 22, 2010
253
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I don't understand how Android has a smartphone share of 47%, while Apple only had 29%. I have only seen 3 Android smartphones, 5 RIM smartphones, and 1 Microsoft Smartphone in the past year, but countless iPhones. Maybe Massachussetts is mostly iPhone users, because I don't see these results reflected in the real world.
 
M

Macbmw

macrumors newbie
Dec 3, 2011
21
0
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Three models of iPhone against too many models of Android. Hummm I'm wonder if the Android models a broken down, where the iPhone stands?
 
B

BigJayhawk

macrumors regular
Jan 8, 2003
227
152
New Jersey
How many phones does GOOGLE SELL again?

How many PHONES does Google actually SELL?

Oh right, there's that one - no wait, that's a Samsung.

Ah but, then again, there was that one - no wait that's an HTC.

Yes, now there's the - crap, it's a Samsung too.

I bet Apple is trying to figure out why they should be scared of having 11.2% of the BUYING MARKETSHARE rather than worrying about the half of the Smartphone OS "Freeware" Marketshare. (Anyone remember the laughs in the media when Steve Jobs said he hoped to get ONE PERCENT of the phone market???)

Apple's $400 - $900 PER PHONE SOLD versus Google selling ads on your Dime a dozen Droid would be a hard choice for ME! Duh. (Not to mention all of the media that phone sells for Apple at another 30%)
 
*LTD*

*LTD*

macrumors G4
Feb 5, 2009
10,703
1
Canada
Blame Ballmer and his arrogance for WP7's results (or lack thereof) today.

Microsoft had their chance to grab hold of the universal-licensing scheme that Google employs today with impunity, but when Ballmer and the world was shown in 2007 what was to come he just laughed it off, thought it was all a big joke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eywi0h_Y5_U

The result? More lousy WinMo iterations for the next three years.

Never mind being way too late in what is probably the most volatile market to have emerged over the last 10 years, WP7 is the very definition of waste and redundancy. MS has tried to position themselves somewhat away from the universal licensing model (which Android has already locked them out of) and toward the controlled, vertical model, but only halfway. Problem is, there is no unseating Apple from that position unless you can pull off another June 2007: namely, revolutionizing the segment entirely. MS hasn't even come close to doing that with WP7. It's a poor "me-too" effort somewhere on the level of the Zune/Zune HD.

There is absolutely no point for a company like MS, with THAT management, to try to beat Apple at the very game they have perfected utterly. Apple owns all the Platinum mindshare out there today, and does vertical integration like no one else.

Ballmer has painted MS into a corner, and will just pull Nokia in tow for the painful ride downward.

Further, with the amazing results Apple is experiencing in the tablet segment (being the de facto standard to beat) MS' late and rather questionable tablet efforts are also in doubt.
 
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Macbmw

macrumors newbie
Dec 3, 2011
21
0
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Eddyisgreat said:
HA I completely forgot Microsoft even sold phones!
Click to expand...

Me too. Lol
 
Duckit

Duckit

macrumors regular
Aug 24, 2011
158
1
NJ, USA
Can't wait to see the December numbers with Christmas and everything. I know a lot of people that go smartphones both android phones and iPhones. It's going to be interesting!
 
Consultant

Consultant

macrumors G5
Jun 27, 2007
13,314
34
And Apple will still own the mobile industry profits because many other companies are giving their products away (and sometime losing money) for market share.
 
KnightWRX

KnightWRX

macrumors Pentium
Jan 28, 2009
15,046
4
Quebec, Canada
dokujaryu said:
All math jokes aside, I'm actually disappointed in these charts for not showing a point growth in total smartphone ownership. It just says 100% / 100%. I realize that's a total of the below figures, but I wish it had told me the delta since the last sample size.
Click to expand...

I wish it had unit numbers instead of percentages so we could see if RIM and Microsoft are really imploding (selling less units) or simply just not growing as fast as the market.
 
S

scottsjack

macrumors 68000
Aug 25, 2010
1,906
311
Arizona
*LTD* said:
Blame Ballmer and his arrogance for WP7's results (or lack thereof) today.

Microsoft had their chance to grab hold of the universal-licensing scheme that Google employs today with impunity, but when Ballmer and the world was shown in 2007 what was to come he just laughed it off, thought it was all a big joke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eywi0h_Y5_U

The result? More lousy WinMo iterations for the next three years.

Never mind being way too late in what is probably the most volatile market to have emerged over the last 10 years, WP7 is the very definition of waste and redundancy. MS has tried to position themselves somewhat away from the universal licensing model (which Android has already locked them out of) and toward the controlled, vertical model, but only halfway. Problem is, there is no unseating Apple from that position unless you can pull off another June 2007: namely, revolutionizing the segment entirely. MS hasn't even come close to doing that with WP7. It's a poor "me-too" effort somewhere on the level of the Zune/Zune HD.

There is absolutely no point for a company like MS, with THAT management, to try to beat Apple at the very game they have perfected utterly. Apple owns all the Platinum mindshare out there today, and does vertical integration like no one else.

Ballmer has painted MS into a corner, and will just pull Nokia in tow for the painful ride downward.

Further, with the amazing results Apple is experiencing in the tablet segment (begin the de facto standard to beat) MS' late and rather questionable tablet efforts are also in doubt.
Click to expand...

Great quote find. It's a wonder that Windows 7 and Office are as good as they are with such a jerk as Ballmer in charge. What an embarrassment.
 
F

firewood

macrumors G3
Jul 29, 2003
8,107
1,345
Silicon Valley
GregR said:
I don't understand how Android has a smartphone share of 47%, while Apple only had 29%.
Click to expand...

It's all those low-end Samsung, LGs and HTCs where their users barely know that their phones are smartphones or buy any apps. Maybe you have to go to cities lower on the economic totem pole to see more of them.
 
QCassidy352

QCassidy352

macrumors G5
Mar 20, 2003
12,028
6,036
Bay Area
*LTD* said:
Blame Ballmer and his arrogance for WP7's results (or lack thereof) today.

Microsoft had their chance to grab hold of the universal-licensing scheme that Google employs today with impunity, but when Ballmer and the world was shown in 2007 what was to come he just laughed it off, thought it was all a big joke:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eywi0h_Y5_U

The result? More lousy WinMo iterations for the next three years.
Click to expand...

great video, thanks for posting. It's unbelievable what's happened in the smartphone space since 2007.
 
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