The latest smartphone OS sales data from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech shows that iOS achieved continued growth across most regions tracked, except for Japan, Spain, and Urban China. Android also continued to post market share increases in all regions but the US, as no other ecosystem is challenging the two giants – iOS and Android.
Gone are the days when a BlackBerry OS, Symbian, or Windows Mobile could make a significant impact. It is clear that there will only be two smartphone ecosystems moving forward – iOS and Android. To succeed, phone manufacturers will have to play by those rulebooks.
In EU5, Android accounted for 74.3% of smartphone sales in the latest period, a marginal increase from 72.9% in the three months ending January 2016. iOS held a 22.7% share, with iPhone 7 remaining the top-selling device in Great Britain, France, and Germany. Europe’s big five markets include Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain.
In Urban China, in the three months ending January 2017, Android accounted for 83.2% of smartphones sold, an increase of 9.3 percentage points versus the same period a year ago. Huawei continues to account for over a quarter of smartphone sales in the region, at 26.6% for the three months ending January 2017. Apple, whose iPhone 7 remains the top-selling smartphone in Urban China, and Xiaomi are the second and third largest manufacturers in Asia, with 16.6% and 14.5% shares, respectively. However, they continue to experience year-on-year declines as they face increased competition from Oppo and Vivo.
In the three months ending January 2017, Android accounted for 56.4% of smartphone sales in the US, down 1.8 percentage points from the period a year earlier. iOS accounted for 42% of smartphone sales, up 2.9 percentage points year-on-year.
Source: Kantar Worldpanel ComTech
MacDailyNews Take: Now imagine if Google hadn’t knocked off Apple’s iOS. The smartphone market share picture would resemble that of smartphone profit share.
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