Android gaining on Apple iOS in mobile web market share

Posted:
in iPhone edited January 2014
Android's share of U.S. mobile web traffic climbed to 25% in August in its best one month gain since Nov. 2009.



Web statistics company Quantcast published the data, which tracked U.S. mobile web consumption in the month of August, on Friday. Android saw a 2% gain in mobile web market share while all other platforms lost share.



In an earlier post, Quantcast noted that it "does not include Apple's iPad in mobile web consumption analysis," although it did not specifically state whether the iPad's figures are excluded from the most recent data set. According to Net Applications, which includes the iPad in its figures, iOS is now the third most popular Web browsing platform globally.



Over the past year, Apple has lost ground to Google, losing 11% of the mobile web consumption market while Google picked up 17% more market share. iOS still maintains a significant lead with 56% of the market, more than twice that of Android, but current growth trends could cause problems for Apple in the near future. If Google can maintain another year of comparable growth, Android will be nearly neck-and-neck with iOS.



The mobile web race continues to be mostly between Google and Apple, as RIM's market share dipped from 10% to 9% last quarter and the combined market share of all other platforms hovered around 10%.







Google's multi-carrier, multi-manufacturer strategy seems to be working. During the second quarter of this year, shipments of Android-based smartphones outpaced iPhones for the first time.



Wall street analysts have warned that Apple may be nearing saturation on the AT&T network in the U.S. Shaw Wu with Kaufman Bros. suggests that a deal between Apple and Verizon could help the iPhone regain some lost market share. With its 93 million subscribers, Verizon could more than double Apple's potential iPhone customer base in the U.S.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 348
    Competition's a good thing.
  • Reply 2 of 348
    Unless Apple licenses iOS, it has no chance of fending off Android. Android will be as ubiquitous as Windows and Apple will be at 6%, again.
  • Reply 3 of 348
    "In an earlier post, Quantcast noted that it "does not include Apple's iPad in mobile web consumption analysis," although it did not specifically state whether the iPad's figures are excluded from the most recent data set."



    And, how then, if I may ask, can these data be accepted AT ALL? No iPad searches included AT ALL? Why not exclude iPhones as well?



    Just more FUD and drivel from the vanquished, IMHO.
  • Reply 4 of 348
    wigginwiggin Posts: 2,265member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Postulant View Post


    Unless Apple licenses iOS, it has no chance of fending off Android. Android will be as ubiquitous as Windows and Apple will be at 6%, again.



    They don't need to license iOS. That would be pointless because the whole point is optimizing the hardware/software combination. There's no way Apple would optimize the software for another manufacturer's hardware. So all you would have is a bunch of crap devices running iOS subpar and taking sales away from Apple. Stupid.



    What they need to do is get iPhone on other carriers. ATT only represents about 1/3 of the US mobile market. That gives Android a 3-to-1 addressable customer base advantage over iPhone. That an imbalance Apple needs to fix if they want to compete with Android on a level playing field in the US.
  • Reply 5 of 348
    Really. Now I know the haterz will roll down shortly, but c'mon. The market can support more than one platform, and the first out of the gate (so to speak) is the one that everyone looks at and compares to. The question is, is Android taking market away from iOS or latent market and from other platforms? Postulant has 6% been bad for Apple?



    This is a growth market, there's still a lot of elbow room and they haven't really tapped its potential. And does it always have to be about Microsoft? Why go there? All other mobile web platforms dropped as Android climbed. Since Android ships on as many as 20-30 different models of smartphones, how can that not have an impact?



    Are you saying that Apple has proven that they didn't learn ANYTHING from all those years of product marketing and development? Or are you just grabbing easy handles in lieu of a deeper look at what is actually going on (can't really fault you for doing that btw, cuz a lot of pundits and "experts" do the <for them> lazy-ass thing and don't bother to get down into what's going on)?



    Or perhaps you are right. Apple has learned nothing over the years and are roundly condemned to squander all their advantages in a wide and growing market, just like they did before. 30 years ago. Because no company (like GE for example) can sustain continued success for an extended period of time without abjectly failing.
  • Reply 6 of 348
    Android is gaining share for two reasons: buy-one-get-one firesales and the lack of iPhone on Verizon. The sun is shining for Android now, but the one-two punch of Oracle's lawsuit and iPhone on Verizon will hit Android like nuclear winter. The clock is ticking, Google...
  • Reply 7 of 348
    @ LewisBlackmore: "And does it always have to be about Microsoft? Why go there? "



    Microsoft? You mean KIN? Zune? Why *did* you go there, Lewys? We thought this was about Android vs. iOS vs. 148,239 mutant branches of Linux lumped together as one.



    Microsoft is such a has-been. Or is that "had-KIN"? LOLLLLz there, bro!. Jes' keepin' it real and real light yo.
  • Reply 8 of 348
    The iPhone is at saturation. They need to open up to other carriers in order to have growth.



    And whether you believe in it or not, the antennagate probably scared off many who might have thought about getting their first iPhone.
  • Reply 9 of 348
    pwjpwj Posts: 19member
    Why would Apple care if their share of mobile browsing was declining? It's not as if their advertising model depends on eyeball looking at internet ads (e.g. Google's ad model); Apple depends on in-application viewing.



    So I really don't see how this matters.







    Also, I'm not sure why so many people think Android's day of decline begins when the iPhone comes to Verizon. Android still sells strongly in the UK, even though the iPhone is available on many carriers. I don't see why the US would be any different



    http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology...k-market-share



    Happily, that at least gives US iPhone consumers a choice in carrier. For instance, my house sits in a Verizon weak spot (my cell usually reports a signal strength of -105 dbm or so); with iPhone carrier competition, there is at least some market choice
  • Reply 10 of 348
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blackintosh View Post


    The iPhone is at saturation. They need to open up to other carriers in order to have growth.



    And whether you believe in it or not, the antennagate probably scared off many who might have thought about getting their first iPhone.



    May as well shut them down and give the money back to shareholders.
  • Reply 11 of 348
    Though not specifically referenced in the AI post, these Quantcast Mobile OS Share numbers are solely for the USA.
  • Reply 12 of 348
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Postulant View Post


    Unless Apple licenses iOS, it has no chance of fending off Android. Android will be as ubiquitous as Windows and Apple will be at 6%, again.



    I don't think so. Check out the differences worldwide. Apple has been rising worldwide - at an even faster rate than Android - but falling in the US. That's AT&T, not an "open" OS like Android.



    http://www.electronista.com/articles...or.use.online/



    Note: These numbers do include iPad, but there are less than 5 million of them, compared to 60 million iPhones, so I don't think they would skew the results terribly.
  • Reply 13 of 348
    Over at mobiThinking they have assembled some interesting GLOBAL numbers which put the US numbers in perspective:



    Global Marketshare by OS (2009)

    Symbian (mostly Nokia): 46.9%, RIM: 19.8%, iOS (iPhone handsets only): 14.4%, Microsoft Windows Mobile: 8.7%, Linux: 4.7%, all Others: 19.0%.



    Global Marketshare of smartphone handset by maker (2009)

    Nokia: 38.9%, RIM: 19.8%, Apple: 14.4%, HTC:4.3%, Samsung: 3.3%, all Others: 19%.



    >Mobile subscribers will surpass 5 billion in 2010 (that's over 70 percent of the world population) and growing rapidly, led by China and India.



    Specific comparison:

    *China 747.4 million subscribers in 2009, growing to est. 1,311.7 million in 2014 eMarketer (February 2010)

    * India 525.2 million subscribers in 2009, growing to est. 853.0 million in 2014 eMarketer (February 2010)

    * USA 285.6 million subscribers in 2009 CTIA (December 2009)



    > Half a billion people accessed mobile Internet worldwide in 2009. Usage will double within five years as mobile overtakes the PC as the most popular way to get on the Web. However, with 233 million mobile Web users in China alone - this could be very conservative.



    > By 2011, over 85 percent of new handsets will be able to access the mobile Web. BUT these are not all smartphones. Makers are finding new ways of simplifying access on feature phones. So mobile web numbers will be mixed.



    > The top five mobile network operators worldwide that derive more of their revenue from data than other operators are all Asian: Smart Philippines, Globe Philippines, SoftBank Japan, NTT DOCOMO Japan, KDDI Japan. NOTE: not a single US carrier in this list!



    And finally: Apple sold 25.1 million phones in 2009 – while this sounds impressive it is only 2.2 percent of all new handsets globally. Nokia sold nearly three times as many smartphones (67.7 million) as Apple and 17 times as many handsets in total (431.8 million). So right wrong or indifferent, Apple is NOT the company to beat - it is Nokia, and following Nokia - RIM.



    mobiThinking correctly calls out these and other equally interesting facts. This is playing out on a global scale and US sales are diminutive compared to the China and India juggernauts. So while the ardent platform disciples gibber and hiss at each other over Android and iOS here in the US - the actual market scales are much, much bigger than this. We are not anywhere near full market penetration for mobile web globally and the US almost doesn't matter. And while getting on Verizon would be nice, China and India are the nuts to crack for best growth -for either Apple or Google.



    So the actual question to ask is, what measure does Apple use to judge success? Obviously it isn't market dominance, SJ stated that he would be happy with 1% of the worldwide market for the iPhone. At 2.2% - this means that the iPhone has surpassed their target handily within 3 years of its inception - from here on out it's all gravy as far as Apple is concerned. What is Google's stated target for Android? Smartphone market segment domination? Anyone? Simply to surpass whatever Apple accomplishes?? Have they even stated what it is??? And if they haven't stated it, how are they going to know when they make it?
  • Reply 14 of 348
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by PeterO View Post


    Though not specifically referenced in the AI post, these Quantcast Mobile OS Share numbers are solely for the USA.



    ah, thanks for the heads up. made a couple edits to specify that they were US figures.
  • Reply 15 of 348
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SockRolid View Post


    @ LewisBlackmore: "And does it always have to be about Microsoft? Why go there? "



    Microsoft? You mean KIN? Zune? Why *did* you go there, Lewys? We thought this was about Android vs. iOS vs. 148,239 mutant branches of Linux lumped together as one.



    Microsoft is such a has-been. Or is that "had-KIN"? LOLLLLz there, bro!. Jes' keepin' it real and real light yo.



    Postulant's statement:



    Quote:

    Android will be as ubiquitous as Windows and Apple will be at 6%, again.



  • Reply 16 of 348
    sockrolidsockrolid Posts: 2,789member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Postulant View Post


    Unless Apple licenses iOS, it has no chance of fending off Android. Android will be as ubiquitous as Windows and Apple will be at 6%, again.



    And did Apple perish with that measly 6% of the overall personal computer market? Nope. Why not?



    Because Apple's 6% is the top 6%. For example, in July 2009, Apple's U.S. market share of all personal computers costing more than $1000 was 91%. Read it and weep:



    http://www.businessinsider.com/apple...rm-says-2009-7



    What's that? You say you can screw together your own pee cee for two hundred bucks? Well good for you. I did that years ago. Jumpers, BIOS settings, and all that. That puts you and me in the tiny minority who actually bothered to roll their own. You can make your own car too if you want. Is it worth the trouble? No.



    Let's take the automotive analogy a little further. Guess what BMW's US market share is. It was 1.9% in June 2009. That's minuscule, but do you think BMW is going to retreat from the US market because they can't out-sell Toyota? I think not:



    http://rumors.automobilemag.com/6554...ear/index.html



    So now we can compare iPod touch market share, iPhone share, and iPad share against Android devices in those same categories, just to be fair. Yes, all those Apple devices run iOS, but...



    Oh wait, there aren't any Android tablets on the market yet? Oops. And what? There aren't any competitors (Android or otherwise) to iPod touch yet? After how many years? I thought Android development began years before iPhone OS aka iOS.



    The reason Android is so far behind iOS in development is because the original Android phones were near-perfect clones of Blackberry. Small screens, chiclet keyboards, and wobble buttons galore. Look it up in Wikipedia. Google was so intent on killing Microsoft that they ganged up against them by copying the most successful smartphone on the market. The Blackberry.



    Fast forward to today and look what Android has been hastily hacked into. A quick and dirty mashup that resembles iOS. So quick and dirty that Google tried to do an end around on the Java license. And that can only result in doom.



    Oracle's lawsuit has merit. Android's Java implementation is not 100% compliant with the Java reference spec, which means Google has not implemented Java at all according to the license agreement. You are either 100% compliant or you are in violation of the agreement. It's that simple.



    Oracle's lawsuit also has legal precedent. Microsoft settled with Sun for a measly $20 million for Java non-compliance. But do you think Larry wants money? Hah. Larry wants blood. The lawsuit requires Android software to be "impounded and destroyed." Google won't be able to buy their way out of this one. Giving away free shovelware just hasn't built up that much karma for them.



    So if you think "barely good enough" Android is going to thrive and overwhelm Apple in some way, you are either ignorant or you are in serious denial. Even if Android manages to survive the Oracle lawsuit somehow (and I don't see how) and the eventual bombshell of iPhone on Verizon and the hopeless fragmentation of 1.x, 2.x, and any number of hardware mutations on the market, Apple will still own top top end of the market. And that means huge profit share.
  • Reply 17 of 348
    nkhmnkhm Posts: 928member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Blackintosh View Post


    The iPhone is at saturation. They need to open up to other carriers in order to have growth.



    And whether you believe in it or not, the antennagate probably scared off many who might have thought about getting their first iPhone.



    Agreed.
  • Reply 18 of 348
    Apple relies only on its own creativity. It cannot otherwise fronts the media darling Microsoft and free advertising that Google and other giants enjoy from the majority of journalists. Look at the shameful BBC piece on the Samsung tablet against iPad.

    How many iPad killer was announced already?



    Apple should be praised for standing alone, not vilified.





    But i guess people love hegemony ( like Apple cannot put an iPhone alongside any Droid phone or Windows phone ).
  • Reply 19 of 348
    You all seem to take these numbers as a fact altough they may be lies. If this firm excludes the iPad but includes them for Apples competitors (type Archos, Dell streak etc) the numbers are skewed.



    It's like presenting a political poll where you include Native Americans if they vote Republican but not if they're Democrats. How can numbers like these be taken seriously.
  • Reply 20 of 348
    joe hsjoe hs Posts: 488member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by 0yvind View Post


    You all seem to take these numbers as a fact altough they may be lies. If this firm excludes the iPad but includes them for Apples competitors (type Archos, Dell streak etc) the numbers are skewed.



    It's like presenting a political poll where you include Native Americans if they vote Republican but not if they're Democrats. How can numbers like these be taken seriously.



    agreed. The only real comparison between the two is ALL iOS DEVICES compared with ALL ANDROID DEVICES, otherwise we have no idea whether the result are skewed, either deliberately or unintentionally.
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