Google overtakes Nokia as maker of top smartphone platform
After passing Apple's iPhone on its way up, Google's Android has now passed up Nokia's Symbian to take the top spot among smartphone platforms, ending Nokia's 10 year reign on top of the global smartphone industry, according to one research firm.
Research firm Canalys revealed Monday that the 32.9 million handsets running a Google platform, which includes Android, OMS and Tapas, sold last quarter were enough to topple Nokia's Symbian, which had sales of 31 million, from the number one place, Reuters reports.
Google saw 615 percent growth year over year, compared to Nokia's 30 percent growth. Apple came in third with 16.2 million iPhones sold, giving it 16 percent of the global smartphone market. Research in Motion and Microsoft rounded out the list with 14 percent and 3 percent of the market respectively.
Though Nokia still maintains a sizable lead as the largest handset maker in the world, it has lost significant ground in the smartphone market in recent years. Former CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo admitted last year that the Finnish handset maker had failed to make a splash in the U.S. smartphone market.
In September, Nokia went through a major management shakeup. The company first announced it would change CEOs, bringing in Microsoft executive Stephen Elop, in hopes of reenergizing the company's smartphone offerings. The company's smartphone chief announced his resignation several days later, then Nokia Chairman Jorma Ollila declared his intention to step down.
Nokia's flagship N8 smartphone saw numerous delays on its way to market. The company even went through a lost prototype debacle similar to the leak of an Apple iPhone 4 prototype that made headlines last year. Though sales of the N8 reportedly reached around 4 million units in the fourth quarter of 2010, the figures have been viewed as too little too late for Nokia.
Google's Android has seen its fair share of controversy on the way to the top. Reports emerged last year that Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs felt betrayed by Google after the search giant followed his company into the smartphone business.
"We did not enter the search business. They entered the phone business," Jobs allegedly said during a company meeting. "Make no mistake; Google wants to kill the iPhone. We won't let them."
While Apple has yet to pursue direct legal action against Google, the iPhone maker has filed infringement complaints against several prominent Android handset manufacturers. The Cupertino, Calif., company sued HTC in March of last year over alleged infringement of patents related to the iPhone user interface, architecture and hardware. HTC responded with a countersuit.
Apple and Motorola are also locked in a legal dispute. In October, Motorola accused Apple of violating a number of its patents, citing the company's "late entry into the telecommunications market." Apple responded in kind, eventually adding to the suit the same patents it was accusing HTC of violating after Motorola attempted to have them invalidated.
Quarterly sales of Android passed up the iPhone in May of last year. Earlier this month, research firm comScore reported that total subscribers of Google Android in the U.S. have passed the iPhone.
In the third quarter of 2010, Apple broke into the top 5 global cell phone makers, passing RIM to place fourth. According to IDC data released last week, Apple slipped to fifth in the fourth quarter.
Research firm Canalys revealed Monday that the 32.9 million handsets running a Google platform, which includes Android, OMS and Tapas, sold last quarter were enough to topple Nokia's Symbian, which had sales of 31 million, from the number one place, Reuters reports.
Google saw 615 percent growth year over year, compared to Nokia's 30 percent growth. Apple came in third with 16.2 million iPhones sold, giving it 16 percent of the global smartphone market. Research in Motion and Microsoft rounded out the list with 14 percent and 3 percent of the market respectively.
Though Nokia still maintains a sizable lead as the largest handset maker in the world, it has lost significant ground in the smartphone market in recent years. Former CEO Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo admitted last year that the Finnish handset maker had failed to make a splash in the U.S. smartphone market.
In September, Nokia went through a major management shakeup. The company first announced it would change CEOs, bringing in Microsoft executive Stephen Elop, in hopes of reenergizing the company's smartphone offerings. The company's smartphone chief announced his resignation several days later, then Nokia Chairman Jorma Ollila declared his intention to step down.
Nokia's flagship N8 smartphone saw numerous delays on its way to market. The company even went through a lost prototype debacle similar to the leak of an Apple iPhone 4 prototype that made headlines last year. Though sales of the N8 reportedly reached around 4 million units in the fourth quarter of 2010, the figures have been viewed as too little too late for Nokia.
Google's Android has seen its fair share of controversy on the way to the top. Reports emerged last year that Apple Chief Executive Steve Jobs felt betrayed by Google after the search giant followed his company into the smartphone business.
"We did not enter the search business. They entered the phone business," Jobs allegedly said during a company meeting. "Make no mistake; Google wants to kill the iPhone. We won't let them."
While Apple has yet to pursue direct legal action against Google, the iPhone maker has filed infringement complaints against several prominent Android handset manufacturers. The Cupertino, Calif., company sued HTC in March of last year over alleged infringement of patents related to the iPhone user interface, architecture and hardware. HTC responded with a countersuit.
Apple and Motorola are also locked in a legal dispute. In October, Motorola accused Apple of violating a number of its patents, citing the company's "late entry into the telecommunications market." Apple responded in kind, eventually adding to the suit the same patents it was accusing HTC of violating after Motorola attempted to have them invalidated.
Quarterly sales of Android passed up the iPhone in May of last year. Earlier this month, research firm comScore reported that total subscribers of Google Android in the U.S. have passed the iPhone.
In the third quarter of 2010, Apple broke into the top 5 global cell phone makers, passing RIM to place fourth. According to IDC data released last week, Apple slipped to fifth in the fourth quarter.
Comments
Both give User Experience a back seat.
ANDROID WILL OVERTAKE SYMBIAN
BY THE END OF 2014?
IT SEEMS IT HAPPENED A BIT EARLIER...
LIKE.. END OF 2010!!
WELL DONE GOOGLE!!
Now what's next?
February the 11th
Nokia embraces Android!!
(meanwhile microsoft cries outloud
cause their windows phone 7
with windows1.0 graphics
and 7000 apps failed to impress
despite $ GIGA $ marketing campaigns)
ff
Wake me up when someone -- other than carriers -- is actually making money off of this thing.
It rhymes with a physical problem I have.
Yawn.
Wake me up when someone -- other than carriers -- is actually making money off of this thing.
Don't forget the OEMs. Last I read, they're all posting profits in regards to the use of Android in their devices.
The one thing Apple has going for them in terms of future-proofing the iPhone is the console methodology of it, which seems to work. It didn't work for PC's, but it seems to work for iPhones and iPods, and perhaps iPads.
I just hope a day doesn't come where the sheer number or Android phones out there stops some developer from making an iPhone app we all need. It probably is worth point out though, that the Mac never sold in numbers anything like the iPhone. So we probably should be Ok there.
Both platforms can co-exist. But is Microsoft going to join them at the top?
With 80 bucks phones, android will have 70-80% market share in no time.
Fortunately, we won't have the same shenanigans we had in the nineties with MS, since android is a lot more open than windows, despite its shortcomings, and Google won't be able to monopolize the market, since there won't be interoperability issues, like there was in the 90s between windows and macs.
I think this is a good situation for almost everyone. Everyone will have a smartphone, the richer people will buy iPhones, the masses will buy android (the smartphone for the rest of us?! Ironic marketing piece, but possible!), everyone will have advanced internet access, e-reader devices, gamecenters, apps, etc.,etc.,etc.
Win win?
Android wins, America loses IMHO.
I don't understand how any American can support Google when they are helping asian companies rip off the IP of innovative American companies. Android does nothing to help the american economy.
Android wins, America loses IMHO.
The vast majority of electronics are manufactured in the Asian countries. Using your line of logic, you might as well stop buying any and all electronics then.
I do know where the iPhone and other electronics are made, but Apple makes the bulk of the money from iPhones and contributes to American exports, Google contributes nothing to American exports.
This is completely expected news. Android will pause the surge a bit in this quarter due to the iPhone being carried by Verizon this February, but this is a global phenomenon, and as such, it seems unstoppable. The iPhone will win the top tier 400-600 dollar phone competition, and android will sweep the whole rest, just like what happens in the laptop business (with microsoft there for the masses).
With 80 bucks phones, android will have 70-80% market share in no time.
While Android will most likely clean up the low end "feature phone" market, don't be too sure that iPhone is going to clean up the top end. There is no price difference between the high end Android phones and iPhone. And the high end Android phones have generally been better than the iPhone in hardware. People are going to decide based on OS/brand/features/value preference whether they will buy an Android or iPhone. No doubt most on this forum will choose iPhones. Many like me have decided to go with Android phones.
They are not actually Google platforms as this report is stating, but are being included because they are based off a Google platform, which is pretty weak since Google doesn't control the direction those platforms head. OMS is actually owned by China Unicom and the other by some ex-Google employee. Both are Chinese though and meant only for the Chinese market.
Whenever someone says "If it ain't broke don't fix it", I think of cases like this.
If it ain't broke, innovate !
IP theft is already part of Oracle vs Google. Apple hasn't sued Google yet for IP theft instead choosing to sue their partners.
I do know where the iPhone and other electronics are made, but Apple makes the bulk of the money from iPhones and contributes to American exports, Google contributes nothing to American exports.
You should really read more, Android has brought many innovations to the table that Apple used as well, including multi-tasking, folders, high-res displays, and many others. The original Droid was the first phone to use the gorilla glass used in the iPhone 4. Apple still has no answers to widgets, wifi-tethering (coming soon), or a secure way to use non-app store apps (little security for apps that aren't checked by apple). Plus the whole America argument is naive, both Google and apple are American companies and Apple has foxconn, a Taiwanese company, produce its iPhone in china. Even Motorola, another American company, produces its phones in Asia.
While Android will most likely clean up the low end "feature phone" market, don't be too sure that iPhone is going to clean up the top end. There is no price difference between the high end Android phones and iPhone. And the high end Android phones have generally been better than the iPhone in hardware. People are going to decide based on OS/brand/features/value preference whether they will buy an Android or iPhone. No doubt most on this forum will choose iPhones. Many like me have decided to go with Android phones.
I do believe many people will choose high end android phones over the iPhone, however the past year has made it clear, people will buy the iPhone even if it has outdated hardware or missing features, so apple will always have higher profit margins. Just like with macs, the iPhone sells to people who don't need high end features but want to spend $200+ anyway. Cutting out features makes the user interface "simpler" and these users won't notice they're running year old hardware, in fact they get mad when new hardware comes out "too fast" as if they have to have the best. One of my iPhone using friends tell me that he doesn't like android because a new android phone would come out three months later making his phone "obsolete." There is a large group of people who actually think like this, and would rather not have new features if it meant their phone wouldn't be the top o' the line anymore. Its amazing.
iPhone will dominate casual users, Android will dominate everything else.
Just just proves people are whores for free stuff. People will take a few phone or highly subsidizes phone and share their personal information and and be blaster with ads just so they do not have to pay for the phone