Android Drops 2%, Apple And Samsung Gain OEM Share.

[AlphaJohn]

comScore Releases February 2013 U.S. Numbers: Android Drops 2%, Apple And Samsung Gain OEM Share

comScore just dropped some new U.S. market share numbers on us and if you like drama, you're going to love this one. According to the analytics company, for the three month period ending in February 2013, Android's share actually dropped 2%, while Apple's rose 3.9%. Before you panic, though, no, this isn't the end of the world.

Since comScore actually gives us the total number of smartphone subscribers in the country (by its count), we can use that percentage to get an idea of just how many total users a platform gained or lost. There were 133.7m total smartphone users in February, versus 123.3m in November. Calculating Google's total, we see that Android had about 66.2m total users in November 2012, which went up to 69.1m in February. So, despite Google's percentage of the market dropping, the number of people adopting Android still rose.

So, why the drop? Well, it's largely because Apple had a very good quarter. In August of 2012, the iPhone made up 34.3% of a 116.5m smartphone market, or about 39.9m total users. By November, Apple's share had only risen about 0.7% as the total market climbed to 123.3m smartphone owners, or about 43.1m iPhones in circulation. Keeping in mind that this time period included the launch of the iPhone 5 in September. It would seem that the eager adopters grabbed them up during this period, but most consumers waited until the holidays because between November and February, Apple's total number of users in the U.S. skyrocketed from 43.1m to 52m, or about nine million new users. Interestingly (though perhaps predictably), Apple made more sales in the holiday quarter than it did during the iPhone 5 launch quarter before it. A narrative that the company's earning reports seem to corroborate (26.9m total global iPhone sales in Q4 2012, vs. 47.8m in Q1 2013).

So, just in case you saw a negative sign and went to grab your torches and pitchforks, no, Android isn't in any danger. The iPhone is doing very well for itself, and Google is sure seeing some slow growth, but adoption of both platforms is increasing, and smartphones are still only 57% of the entire mobile market.

Where things really get interesting (and, frankly, a little bit sad) is on the OEM side:

Apple is up 3.9% between November and February, Samsung is up 1%, while everyone else is down, down, down. HTC most of all, with a loss of 1.7% of the market. Motorola similarly dropped, while LG crept down two tenths of a percentage point. To be fair, like with the platform shares, this doesn't tell the whole story. While November's OEM numbers included dumbphone sales, that method of tracking changed in December. Compare that month's numbers to February's and LG actually gained a tiny bit (up by about 100k), whereas Motorola and HTC both lost users. So, despite the numbers looking bleak for anyone but Samsung or Apple, LG at the very least benefited from the goodwill the Nexus 4 brought it. Just not enough to keep up with the rest of the industry. At least in the U.S..

Source: http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/0...oid-drops-2-apple-and-samsung-gain-oem-share/
comScore: http://www.comscore.com/Insights/Pr..._2013_U.S._Smartphone_Subscriber_Market_Share

Hmmm good to see it drop a bit, more than 50% is just dangerois for us consumers. Also sad to see Windows Phone not picking up a bit more. Erm Blackberry sup?

 

[cerebus]

US statistics and international statistics are quite different. Still it should be obvious that Apple is doing much better than pundits were anticipating.

 

[AlphaJohn]

US statistics and international statistics are quite different. Still it should be obvious that Apple is doing much better than pundits were anticipating.

US still accounts for the biggest % in smartphone sales, so the numbers matter at what OEM's target. Hense my upset about the low uptake on Windows Phone.

 

[Hush9300]

No surprise that Apple and Samsung are doing well in the US. What would be interesting is a breakdown of the models which make up the percentages.

Android does extremely well on an international level because they offer a plethora of entry level phones. I would think the US market share is made up of predominantly high end models due to subsidies so if these bear even remotely true internationally for only high end models then Apple is looking very good.

I also think shaking up the market by releasing earlier will give Apple an even bigger boost.

 

[JStrike]

US still accounts for the biggest % in smartphone sales, so the numbers matter at what OEM's target. Hense my upset about the low uptake on Windows Phone.

Definitely. Hopefully this year WP starts getting some traction. It needs to break the 8% barrier

 

[cerebus]

I still do not see a reason to actively CHOOSE a WP phone above iOS or Android. It isn't exactly bad, it's just.. why should my money go there? Not one thing is really superior than the competition. That is unfortunately I think is why it just isn't getting traction. It's coasting on tiles and the Microsoft brand which means nothing in mobile anymore.

On the side of Apple, it's quite clear to me that the only people who should be telling Apple what they need to do is Apple themselves. Their track record on predicting the market is completely unassailable. They seem to know exactly what it is that customers actually want, and shut out the noise from paranoid androids in the tech press and even their shareholdership. Stock fluctuations aside, these numbers should be a vindication of their current direction and the success of post-Jobs leadership.

 

[JStrike]

I still do not see a reason to actively CHOOSE a WP phone above iOS or Android. It isn't exactly bad, it's just.. why should my money go there? Not one thing is really superior than the competition. That is unfortunately I think is why it just isn't getting traction. It's coasting on tiles and the Microsoft brand which means nothing in mobile anymore.

On the side of Apple, it's quite clear to me that the only people who should be telling Apple what they need to do is Apple themselves. Their track record on predicting the market is completely unassailable. They seem to know exactly what it is that customers actually want, and shut out the noise from paranoid androids in the tech press and even their shareholdership. Stock fluctuations aside, these numbers should be a vindication of their current direction and the success of post-Jobs leadership.

Agreed. However WP actually tried to create a totally new UI, which wasn't just a copy of Apples, and Nokia created some really great phones.
I believe they should be rewarded for that

 

[cerebus]

1) The WP UI is different. It's also quite flawed in a lot of ways. Blinking distracting tiles instead of icons, and flat text that obscures clickable areas. It's monochromatic, inefficient in use of space, and restrictive to design. Take a look at Facebook Home for a contrast. It's also a new way of doing UI that focuses on making the screen space as beautiful as possible.
2) Why should they be rewarded for skinning a phone? The Android market is FULL of skins, some of them even replicate the WP look. The only thing they should be rewarded for is making something better than the competition. Nothing else counts in the market.

 

[JStrike]

1) The WP UI is different. It's also quite flawed in a lot of ways. Blinking distracting tiles instead of icons, and flat text that obscures clickable areas. It's monochromatic, inefficient in use of space, and restrictive to design. Take a look at Facebook Home for a contrast. It's also a new way of doing UI that focuses on making the screen space as beautiful as possible.
2) Why should they be rewarded for skinning a phone? The Android market is FULL of skins, some of them even replicate the WP look. The only thing they should be rewarded for is making something better than the competition. Nothing else counts in the market.

While I agree with your points, I think WP is pretty good. Not as good as iOS, but still pretty good. And it's original.
And I would like to see them get rewarded for that. And by rewarded, I mean 10%, not 50%

 

[Hush9300]

1) The WP UI is different. It's also quite flawed in a lot of ways. Blinking distracting tiles instead of icons, and flat text that obscures clickable areas. It's monochromatic, inefficient in use of space, and restrictive to design. Take a look at Facebook Home for a contrast. It's also a new way of doing UI that focuses on making the screen space as beautiful as possible.
2) Why should they be rewarded for skinning a phone? The Android market is FULL of skins, some of them even replicate the WP look. The only thing they should be rewarded for is making something better than the competition. Nothing else counts in the market.

While I agree with your points, I think WP is pretty good. Not as good as iOS, but still pretty good. And it's original.
And I would like to see them get rewarded for that. And by rewarded, I mean 10%, not 50%

Much better chance of Blackberry getting that 10%.

 

[Polymathic]

The main problem that windows phone had is that the Lumia 920 was way too bulky for the average consumer, otherwise they would of grabbed much more market share. I also expect Windows Market share to increase as many companies will adopt it

 

[BeVonk!]

IMO the WP (and Windows RT) UI is UGLY and as Cerebus said a waste of valuable screen space. Yes, it is new, but it sure as hell is not better. I cannot see Microsoft getting this right. They have been at this for ages and just never got it right. It's like a mobile device curse rests on them.

What is now unfortunate is that they messed up Windows ... and will kill Desktop as soon as they can.

MS has chosen a path of doom for themselves. Ballmer gets what he wants.

 

[SmartKit]

US still accounts for the biggest % in smartphone sales, so the numbers matter at what OEM's target. Hense my upset about the low uptake on Windows Phone.

Which is only 10% of the market, with a 35% penetration rate. Singapore is 90% and Australia 42%. Not a great sample, especially in Apple's back yard.

 

[BeVonk!]

The US is an important market but becoming less and less so. A shift is taking place to the East and it will reach a point where the US is just not "THE" standard any more.

 

[Hush9300]

The US is not becoming less and less important... This is just what people tell themselves as a means of self soothing.

The east is big on budget phones and it is a sector Apple doesn't compete in at present. So it's almost irrelevant when comparing market share but even so Apple is seeing double figure growth in some of these very markets. Even without a cheap phone.

 

[Dolby]

Their track record on predicting the market is completely unassailable.

Not always at the right time?
Remember all the blunders they have had in the past?

In the last decade, they've been OK under STeve Jobs - but even in the past 2 years things haven't been rosy without him

They've also got this nasty habit of saying 'we will not do that ; you will be happy with what we give you' instead of simply listening

 

[cerebus]

Not always at the right time?
Remember all the blunders they have had in the past?

In the last decade, they've been OK under Steve Jobs - but even in the past 2 years things haven't been rosy without him

Making blunders sure, they've made a few. Under Steve Jobs they also made blunders, failed products, recalls and apologies, firing of senior staff. That's just part of business, and they're probably the most scrutinized company on earth. And they're under an enormous pressure now to continue to succeed. But what I'm talking about is the fact that their track record on sales and revenue is continuing unabated, and their market position now is stronger in pure percentage terms than it was under Jobs' tenure. People are saying they need to start being like Samsung but in fact they've even managed to extend their lead over Samsung.

They've also got this nasty habit of saying 'we will not do that ; you will be happy with what we give you' instead of simply listening

They've got plenty of nasty habits. But as long as people keep buying their products, why shouldn't they give you what they feel you want, as it seems to be exactly what a lot of people do want?

 

[JimboBob]

Does a cheap iPhone = following Samsung?

 

[Hush9300]

Not always at the right time?
Remember all the blunders they have had in the past?

In the last decade, they've been OK under Steve Jobs - but even in the past 2 years things haven't been rosy without him

Making blunders sure, they've made a few. Under Steve Jobs they also made blunders, failed products, recalls and apologies, firing of senior staff. That's just part of business, and they're probably the most scrutinized company on earth. And they're under an enormous pressure now to continue to succeed. But what I'm talking about is the fact that their track record on sales and revenue is continuing unabated, and their market position now is stronger in pure percentage terms than it was under Jobs' tenure. People are saying they need to start being like Samsung but in fact they've even managed to extend their lead over Samsung.

They've also got this nasty habit of saying 'we will not do that ; you will be happy with what we give you' instead of simply listening

They've got plenty of nasty habits. But as long as people keep buying their products, why shouldn't they give you what they feel you want, as it seems to be exactly what a lot of people do want?

Steve Jobs said: “A lot of times, people don’t know what they want until you show it to them.”

 

[JimboBob]

lol

sounds like a pervert....