Apple continues to widen gap between iOS, Android use in U.S.
“Apple Inc.’s ‘Move to iOS’ app may have been the target of angry Android users last week, but that hasn’t stopped Apple from racking up an unprecedented number of switchovers,” Jennifer Booton reports for MarketWatch. “Apple reported the strongest-ever adoption of its mobile operating system on Monday, while two analysts in separate notes to clients spoke of the widening gap in the U.S. between Google Inc.’s Android and iOS.”
“The number of people in the U.S. expressing an intent to buy an iPhone has grown to 53.2% from 43.7% a year ago… according to a recent survey by Baird Equity Research,” Booton reports. “Intent to buy Androids, meanwhile, has slid to 46.8% from 56.3% a year ago.”
“Canaccord Genuity analyst Mike Walkley said his checks indicate there continues to be a greater mix of Android users switching to the iPhone 6 than in previous cycles, a reflection of demand for larger-screen premium phones and the industry shift away from two-year carrier contracts,” Booton reports. “Carriers, facing new competition from Apple’s iPhone installment plan, are pushing harder for iPhone sales, particularly unsubsidized handsets. While carriers like AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications previously used the increased store traffic surrounding iPhone launches to cross-sell larger-screen Android devices, they have narrowed their focus to the iPhone. ‘There is a push to sell more iPhones with the 6 and 6S product cycles at point of sale versus Android than during the 5 and 5S product cycles,’ said Walkley, who raised his 12-month stock target on Apple to $160 from $155 on Monday.”
