Between the Lines

Larry Dignan, Andrew Nusca and Rachel King

Comscore: Android leads RIM, Apple in U.S. smartphone market

By | May 9, 2011, 6:26am PDT

Summary: Comscore has published results from its latest quarterly report on mobile market shares. Most of the big names have suffered losses, and none more so than RIM.

Comscore has published results from its latest quarterly report on mobile market shares. Most of the big names have suffered losses, and none more so than RIM.

For perspective, the report reveals results up to the end of March 2011. Comscore asserts that covers 72.5 million people in the United States owned smartphones up to that point.

Unsurprisingly, Palm found itself at the bottom of the big five tied (at least in point changes) with Microsoft. However, Palm could surge again under the HP brand name - depending on the success of the HP Pre 3 and HP Veer.

RIM suffered the most obvious loss by dropping 4.5 points in the smartphone market share, although it’s still in second place overall. Apple managed to hang on to third with a half-point increase, which isn’t bad considering the only “new” smartphone it produced before the end of March was the Verizon iPhone in black. We’ll see in three months if the white iPhone did anything to help out.

Finally, Google reigned supreme by surging four points and hanging onto the top spot. Given how many Android smartphones are coming out this summer with multiple carriers and manufacturers (and the lack of releases launching by any of its competitors), it’s hard to imagine that Google won’t hold onto the top spot in the next three months.

[Chart via Comscore]

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Rachel King is a staff writer for ZDNet based in San Francisco.

Disclosure

Rachel King

Rachel King has no business relationships, affiliations, investments, or other potential conflicts of interest relating to the content posted in this blog.

Biography

Rachel King

Rachel King is a staff writer for CBS Interactive in San Francisco. Before serving as a contributing editor at ZDNet in New York City for two years, she previously worked for The Business Insider, FastCompany.com, CNN's San Francisco bureau and the U.S. Department of State. Rachel has also written for MainStreet.com, Irish America Magazine and the New York Daily News, among others. Rachel has a B.A. in Mass Communications and History from the University of California, Berkeley and a M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University, where she served as art director for the student magazine, Plated.

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RE: Comscore: Android leads RIM, Apple in U.S. smartphone market
Pete "athynz" Athens 9th May 2011
@omdguy I do own an iPhone but I didn't get it because it was "cool" but because out of the devices on the market at the time I purchased my first iPhone (the 3G) I found it to be the most intuitive and easy to use. I got the iPhone 4 because of my familiarity with the OS as well as the advancements made with the software and hardware in the intervening 2 year timespan. It does what I want it to do when I want it done and that's all I ask of any tech.

My next purchase will be a Nook Color so I can root it to run Android and have an inexpensive Android tablet not tied down to any sort of carrier's plan or subsidizing.
The need to fire Balmer and figure out how to really go after the mobile market.
@DonnieBoy
Actually if you compare the previous reports, the negative percent of Microsoft Windows Phones have slowed down, that means market is increasing for WP7 but it is also killing WM6.5. The death rate of WM6.5 is little higher than wP7 adoption rate thats why you see negative there. At somepoint the trend will turn upwards i.e once Verizon releases WP7, it will be positive and once WM6.5 is out of telcos, the trend will more positive for it. I am not saying it will catch iPhone and Android immediately, but I am just trying clarify you.
WM6.5 users that is very telling. From the numbers, WM6.5 users are more likely to migrate to iPhone or Android than to stay with Microsoft. Ouch.
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@DonnieBoy Actually the thing to notice is the comparatively huge drop of RIM in marketshare... a much much higher loss than Microsoft has even with some die hard WM users doggedly hanging in there. Hopefully RIM will be able to make a comeback or at least reverse this trend with the BB OS 7.
that Microsoft. You are right that they may be able to reverse thing with BBOS7, but, that is still a long ways off. Things are looking very bleak for Microsoft.
Why does Apple get a pass for no growth but RIM gets nailed? RIM has not released one device since last summer so it's impacting their sales. No one wants to buy/upgrade a Blackberry when the new line is coming over the next few months.

Let's see how RIM share looks after the launch of Bold Touch, New Touch, Curve Touch etc. RIM is rebooting so yeah during this time they are going to lose sales / market.

Market share is going to ebb and flow as devices change, carried roll out 4G etc. I love how everyone makes this out to be some one and done thing.
time to prime the pipeline with new models, but, they were like a deer caught in the headlights.
@MobileAdmin Well Apples sales grew a meager 0.5% and RIM dropped 4.5% thats why
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Actually as I read the results Apple
James Quinn 9th May 2011
@MobileAdmin

has continued growth. Which since iOS has been around longer than Android it's growth would logically be harder to maintain since in theory being around longer means a larger installed based. Hence what with Android being the younger and having WAY more OEMS pushing out various models it's growth is to be expected. Now lets switch back the the real question who is raking in the money?

Pagan jim
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Right, that is the real question
otaddy 9th May 2011
@James Quinn Do we know what Google gets in return for Android? Otherwise, it sounds like Sun's Java strategy..lots of user numbers but little cash coming in.
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@MobileAdmin Didn't they release a new Bold and a new Curve this past summer? And how did Apple get a free pass for growth? Oh yeah because they GREW!
@athynz

If you knew how to read you'd see this report / chart is for the period Dec 10 - March 11 which RIM had no new devices so if I was looking to upgrade during this time I likely didn't choose a Blackberry.

RIM needs new devices on every carrier ASAP
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@MobileAdmin Actually I misread your comment rather than the chart... the whining about RIM not releasing any devices since the summer as well as the whining about Apple growing (which had overtones of "It's not fair") made me lose interest in paying close attention to what you really said. Don't be a total tool about this.

I will agree that RIM needs some new devices and release BB OS 7 ASAP... as well as put devices like the Torch (only better) on every carrier rather than have those (and the Storm - and again a much better Storm as the original one pretty much sucked out loud and made me go back to the Curves) on select carriers only.
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old news?
bstringy 9th May 2011
Wasn't this report released a month ago?
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Who Cares
Hasam1991 9th May 2011
Let Android win! Apple will always be the cool niche brand to have.
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Depends on how one defines victory?
James Quinn 9th May 2011
@Hasam1991
It can be said in the desktop MS won because they sold the most and for a long time made the most. Now in Mobile will Android win with numbers? What about profit and to whom? Well if MS won then all the OEMS did not so will Google be the winner? How much will Google make compared to the likes of MS? What about all those OEM"S and their phones? Are they making good mony per sale or are they depending on volume? Are they or will they soon be fighting one another for profits/sales? Forcing margins ever downward? Does one even want to win that battle? Who wins if in the end it's just numbers of units sold and not so much about profit? I think Apple....

Pagan jim
@Hasam1991

Please explain why owning a phone from a multi billion dollar company with a CEO who is one of the most arrogant on the planet is "cool"?

Also Please explain why owning ANY tech device from ANY company is "cool"?
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@omdguy I do own an iPhone but I didn't get it because it was "cool" but because out of the devices on the market at the time I purchased my first iPhone (the 3G) I found it to be the most intuitive and easy to use. I got the iPhone 4 because of my familiarity with the OS as well as the advancements made with the software and hardware in the intervening 2 year timespan. It does what I want it to do when I want it done and that's all I ask of any tech.

My next purchase will be a Nook Color so I can root it to run Android and have an inexpensive Android tablet not tied down to any sort of carrier's plan or subsidizing.
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RIM has release new phone since June
Richard1111 9th May 2011
What a useless and bias comment regarding "which isn?t bad considering the only ?new? smartphone it produced before the end of March was the Verizon iPhone in black" ??? Why you making excuses for Apple? Is it b/c Verizon is the biggest network in America and Apple only managed a 0.5 increase in market share? That's really bad, as Android has blow pass both RIM and Apple.

As for RIM, they haven't released a new device since September last year, and who knows how long has it been since they release anything new on Verizon and no Bold 9780 is not a new phone.
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When one considers all the OEM's
James Quinn 9th May 2011
@Richard1111
Dumping Android devices onto the market it's a wonder Apple grew at all:P However they did and that is HUGE!!!! Especially based on all the money Apple makes per sale as opposed to all those Android OEM's. All in all i'd much rather be Apple!

Pagan jim
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Stupid comparisons
Robert Hahn 9th May 2011
In other news, Microsoft passed Dell and Acer.

Since when are people not to feel insulted when somebody tries to sell this "operating system vendor vs the hardware guys" rubbish? Yes, it's rubbish.

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