Prior to the release of the iPhone 4S, Android increased its market share. But it’s too early to celebrate this fact, says Bill Palmer, editor-in-chief of BeatWeek Magazine. Only the market share has increased as a percentage, while quantitative growth has seriously slowed down.
Moreover, a small increase occurred at a time when iPhone sales were artificially frozen so that potential iPhone buyers would know that Apple was going to release a new model before the holiday season.
If not for Apple’s decision to postpone the release from summer to autumn, Android would have lost market share as a percentage. While the exact figures for the current quarter, which will take into account the sales of the new iPhone, are not available, there are some doubts that the record sales of the iPhone 4S will really change the situation in the smartphone market. That is, for the Apple platform to gain market share, and Android, on the contrary, to lose. But recently Apple has started to expand the list of mobile operators, and this is another “for” in favor of Apple gaining the upper hand over Android.
OperatorsIt seems obvious that most of the Android sales were the result of the fact that in each country the iPhone was represented by only one operator (meaning subscription sales of the phone based on an agreement with the operator).
In the US, it is an AT&T unloved by many. Most average Android users, when asked why they preferred it, are unlikely to say anything positive about this platform. Instead, you can hear: “Because my operator is Sprint” or “Because I can’t stand AT&T”.
Now that Apple is rapidly expanding the number of operators, the popularity of Android among them, respectively, is falling. In contrast to the increase in the Android market share, the entry into the tablet market was a continuous series of failures for Google. Tablets are not so dependent on operators, so Apple has consistently dominated this market. Now that iPhone sales are not limited to one operator, the smartphone market will become similar to the tablet market. But operators are not the only factor in this game.
Decline in the influence of “geeks”
Users are increasingly making the decision to buy a phone themselves, or they are asking advice from buyers of the same level, rather than listening to what advanced geeks say about consumer goods.
Most of the users now live on Facebook, geeks have moved to Google+, where they are far from the mainstream and can claim the right to be called the center of the technical universe. What is the result? These experts communicate where 99% of the majority simply cannot hear them.
Experience
Sales managers everywhere swore that Android was “the same as the iPhone, only better” – and many of the “majority” believed these words. But, as users gain their own experience, the external influence decreases. After a year or two of using Android phones, users are increasingly convinced that it is “not the same as the iPhone.” Especially after watching friends who own an iPhone, which is much easier to manage, and the quality of applications is also far ahead. Such users who purchased the first Android under external influence will not buy a second such phone.
Especially if their operator offers them an iPhone 4S.