Apple operating system stuck at 14% marketshare in third quarter while Windows Phone makes progress year on year
Apple's iOS operating system has failed to make any gains in the third quarter of 2013, while Microsoft's Windows Phone is making strong progress thanks to its marriage with Nokia.
iOS marketshare remained flat in the third quarter 2013 at 14%, from the same figure in the second quarter, according to a new report from ABI Research.
However, Windows Phone share has risen from 3.5% in the second quarter of 2013 to 3.7% in the third quarter.
Year on year, Windows Phone has experienced an impressive 165% leap in marketshare from the third quarter 2012, with Nokia accounting for 95% of that shipment volume.
While BlackBerry's third quarter marketshare dropped down to 2%, from 3% in the previous quarter, Android's marketshare has risen to 81% from 79.6% in the second quarter, supported by strong Android shipment growth from Huawei, Lenovo, Xiaomi, and Samsung.
The report shows that 438 million handsets and 244 million smartphones shipped during the third quarter of 2013. Samsung retained its lead in handset shipments and grew its share of smartphone shipments to 35%, compared to Apple's flat share of 14%.
Smartphone shipment penetration was 56% in the third quarter, setting a record high for the third consecutive quarter.
'The race for the third ecosystem is clearly favouring Windows Phone with 4% market share, over BlackBerry's 1.5%, but there remains little opportunity for new market entrants to make a significant impact on Android's dominance,' commented senior analyst, at ABI Research, Michael Morgan. Despite Apple's stalemate in the third quarter, company revenue guidance for the fourth quarter indicates a record 53 million iPhones will ship.
Commented senior practice director, Nick Spencer: 'Even with a record fourth quarter for the iPhone, Apple is only expected to achieve 18.7% market share which is down from the 22.6% Apple achieved in the same quarter 2012, due to Android's growing dominance and the importance of emerging markets.'
