Google’s Android operating system is expected to lead a growing smartphone market, increasing its No. 1 position to just under 50 percent by 2015, according to one analysis released Tuesday. Apple is in third-place, its iOS commanding just 15.7 percent of smartphones. Potentially more troubling, the IDC report shows Apple’s growth by 2015 relatively flat, falling to 15.3 percent in four years.
As the smartphone market takes 49.2 percent of the mobile handset market, Nokia’s Symbian will suffer. The cell phone giant’s smartphone market share will fall from this year’s fourth-place 20.9 percent, to 0.2 percent by 2015, according to the researchers.
“For the vendors who made Android the cornerstone of their smartphone strategies, 2010 was the coming-out party. This year will see a coronation party as these same vendors broaden and deepen their portfolios to reach more customers, particularly first-time smartphone users,” said senior IDC research analyst Ramon Llamos.
Microsoft’s Windows 7 smartphone platform will surge from its current 5.5 percent of the market to 20.9 percent, according to the research.
Overall, 450 million smartphones are expected to ship globally in 2011, up dramatically from 303.4 million in 2010, a period researchers describe has having exceptional growth due to pent-up demand for the handsets.
[Reuters]
Ed Sutherland is a veteran technology journalist who first heard of Apple when they grew on trees, Yahoo was run out of a Stanford dorm and Google was an unknown upstart. Since then, Sutherland has covered the whole technology landscape, concentrating on tracking the trends and figuring out the finances of large (and small) technology companies.
12 responses to “Survey: Android Leading Growing Smartphone Market”
“Potentially more troubling, the IDC …”
Let me rephrase that: ‘Potentially more troubling for IDC is the prediction that WP7 smartphone platform will surge from its current 5.5 percent of the market to 20.9 .’
Incredible. Even the 5.5 percent currently must be a lie.
J.
The assertion that iOS is decreasing because Android is increasing is mostly false. Non-smartphone handsets are decreasing and Android smartphones are filling that space. The iPhone is pretty much holding steady. I really detest FUD created by these stupid analyses.
Does Llamos really think Windows 7 phones are going to hit 5.5% of 450 million THIS YEAR?! That’s almost 25 million phones!
Analysts are always looking at iOS in a negative light as compared to Android without regard to financial revenue. Apple is one company going up against many but all the profits Apple makes is theirs alone. As long as iPhone sales continue to rise, Apple makes more money regardless of Android selling twice as many smartphones. So, even if Apple faces declining market share, revenue will still continue to climb and that’s what matters. Even flat growth would be great for Apple. I don’t see anything troubling in that.
Pure BS.
Here’s my prediction, which I’m pulling straight out of MY ass:
Android – 42% mainly due to free phones and BOGO
iOS – 27% (with 80% of the revenue share, and not including iPods and iPads)
WP7, 8, 9 whatever – 16% if NOKIA can stay afloat that long
Everything else (RIM, WebOS, Android variants, etc.) – 15%
It’s an old game. Hire IDC or Gartner to do research for your company and amazingly their “independent” report on your industry shows you as a winner. Or I could be completely off base.