It's guaranteed that if you mention anything relating to the smartphone market, you will eventually have to talk about either one of the big two, Android and iOS. With Android dominating half of the smartphone market due to the range of devices that support it and the iPhone being immensely popular, it's no surprise that they dominate the market and leave little room for competitors.
Now a new report from the International Data Corporation (IDC) has found that Android and iOS accounted for 59 per cent and 23 per cent of the market shipped during the first quarter of 2012. That's 82 per cent of the entire market or 124.9 million smartphones shipped during this period, and to put that into perspective, the two operating systems held a combined share of 54.4 per cent during the first quarter of 2011.
Unsurprisingly, Samsung was the largest contributor to Android's success with the performance of the Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note to thank. Other smartphone OS didn't fare so well with Symbian and Blackberry continuing to fall while others like Windows Phone are still trying to get a foothold in the market and improve their fortunes.
The senior research analyst with IDC's Mobile Phone Technology and Trends Ramon Llamas said: "The popularity of Android and iOS stems from a combination of factors that the competition has struggled to keep up with…Neither Android nor iOS were the first to market with some of these features, but the way they made the smartphone experience intuitive and seamless has quickly earned a massive following."
It's unlikely that these positions are going to change soon, but the news is especially worrying for Blackberry and Windows Phone. Both operating systems are in danger of permanently falling behind and not gaining any significant foothold in the market. With the BB 10 due for release later this year and Nokia releasing the Lumia 900 recently, both Blackberry and Windows Phone will hope that they will help increase their market share and increase competition against the big two.
Also Samsung's dominance in the market could help pull Android further away from Apple since it has the release of its Galaxy S III so it could mean that Android's dominance could grow even further if these trends continue.
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