According to a study by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, for the first time the share of Android devices occupied more than half of the markets of major countries in Europe, Australia and the USA: it ranges from 49.6% in Italy to a record 84.1% in Spain.
According to experts, in the last 3 months, the popularity of the platform in Europe has increased dramatically, which is probably due to the release of numerous new smartphones in European markets.
Dominic Sunnebo, Director of consumer research at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, comments on the data obtained as follows: “We see that the main driver of Android growth has been the transition of consumers from conventional phones to smartphones. Android phones are now the most convenient platform for consumer upgrades, as many users who bought a smartphone for the first time cite “the price of the phone” and “multimedia capabilities” as the main reasons for choosing an Android smartphone.”
Over the past year, the share of Android-based smartphones in the UK market has grown by 8.5% and now stands at 57.2%. Another 25.6% of the market is occupied by iOS (an increase of 5.4%), and 3.7% by Windows Phone 7 (an increase of 2%). The sharpest decline in popularity among BlackBerry OS, the share of which decreased from 19.3% to 10.6% over the year.
A similar scenario for capturing the market by the Android platform is observed in Spain, Germany, Italy and France. But unlike the UK, the share of iOS has decreased in these countries. For example, in Spain, the share of iOS fell to a minimum of 3.2%, losing even to Symbian. As a result, the share of Android in this country has reached 84.1%.
Separately, it is worth noting the data for the USA. The exception to the general trend was this country, where the share of Android, on the contrary, decreased – from 57% to 50.2%. At the same time, the popularity of the iPhone increased by 8.7%, reaching 37.4% of the market. Some growth is also observed in Windows Phone 7 – from 2.7% to 4.8%.
According to analysts, the release of the sixth-generation iPhone may change the current market situation. So, the financial company Wells Fargo recently announced that the sale of a new Apple smartphone will be an event, “the largest in the history of consumer electronics.” In their opinion, a smartphone that has received 4G support and other improvements “will make a lot of noise, which will ensure its dominance throughout 2013.”