Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
Quantcast has shown that Android is climbing up stealthilty, now taking up a 25 percent share of total mobile Web consumption in the United States. Apple’s iOS, however, is seeing its share decline, from approximately 67 percent in May 2009 to 56 percent in August 2010.
If this trend were to continue, Android’s share should be equal to that of iOS in an approximate twelve months, at least according to Quantcast. Both are still growing rapidly in absolute numbers, but what’s interesting is seeing the relative shares shifting. BlackBerry’s Research In Motion (RIM) has a share that is roughly 10 percent, showing no signs of growth whatsoever. It is clear that the battle for dominance over the mobile Web is being fought by two companies, Google and Apple, at this point.
In another graph below, Quantcast reports that Android took share from every corner of the market last month. It is Android’s best month share gain since November 2009, when it surpassed the 10 percent share mark.
Sources:
http://techcrunch.com/2010/09/03/quantcast-mobile-web-browsing/
http://www.androidcentral.com/android-mobile-web-usage-climbing-while-others-fall
http://androidspin.com/2010/09/06/android-on-its-way-to-the-top/
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
As some predicted, the BlackBerry Torch doesn’t seem to be selling as well. The WSJ cites analysts at RBC Capital Markets and Stifel Nicolaus estimate that RIM sold about 150,000 of the device over the weekend. In comparison, the iPhone 4 sold about 1.7 million devices in its opening weekend.
Well, one can say that BlackBerry devices are often sold to business customers, who are not often the first in line to buy a new device. However, there are some similarities. Like the iPhone 4, the Torch, with its updated OS, has a large screen and a slide-out keyboard, making it a perfect competitor to Apple’s smartphone.
It is still too early to call the Torch a failure or a success. With RIM expanding the launch to other countries and carriers, we might have a clearer picture in the near future.
Source:
http://mashable.com/2010/08/17/blackberry-torch-sales-report/
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
The NPD Group, one of the largest market research companies in the United States, has reported that Android smartphones has outsold the BlackBerry in sales for Q2 2010. Android accounted for 33 percent of all smartphones purchased in Q2, ahead of RIM (28 percent) and Apple (22 percent).
The top 5 Android phones sold in the second quarter in the US were:
It’s not surprising that the Motorola Droid is at the top of that list. Especially with all those publicity and Droid commercials being pumped out every few weeks.
Let’s see if RIM’s new marketing campaign and the launch of BlackBerry 6 will help them with sales in Q3.
Sources:
http://www.androidcentral.com/npd-android-takes-lead-over-blackberry-q2-fanboys-rejoice-everywhere
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
Blackberry’s RIM has just announced the release of OS 6, a new version which includes social media management, RSS feed incorporation, and a new Universal Search tool. It also includes a new WebKit browser and revamped UI. The new OS also has a podcast subscription application and enhanced media playing tools including Wi-Fi media sync. The OS 6 will appear on the new Blackberry Torch first, before being made available for newer Blackberry phones like the Bold 9700, Bold 9650, and the Pearl 3G.
Source:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/03/rim-launches-blackberry-6-platform/
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
Canalys, a high-tech market trends research consultancy, has released a press release indicating an impressive growth for Android smart phones in markets around the world. Smartphone shipment data for Q2 2010 has shown a remarkable growth of Android device shipments across a range of handset vendors such as HTC, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, LG and others. Shipments of smartphones running Android OS has grown an impressive 886% in Q2 2010.
The United States itself, being the largest smartphone market in the world, had a 41% market growth from last year with 14.7 million units accounting for 23% of global shipments in Q2 2010. Android devices collectively represented a 34% share of the US market in the quarter, and with growth of 851% Android became the largest smartphone OS in the country.
Although Android has shown progress, Nokia has retained a substantial lead in the worldwide smartphone market in Q2 2010, achieving a 38% market share. The vendor shipped a record 23.8 million smart phones during the quarter, representing growth of 41% on a year ago.
Despite Nokia leading the pack, other vendors are closing the gap. Shipments of RIM’s BlackBerry smartphones was placed second once again with an 18% market share and 41% growth. RIM also retained its leadership position in North and Latin America. Initial shipments of the iPhone 4 were predictably strong and contributed to Apple’s 61% growth and worldwide market share of 13% for the quarter.
The presence of Android smartphones are also growing in China and South Korea. China was the world’s second largest smartphone market in Q2 2010 for the sixth consecutive quarter, with shipments of 6.9 million units representing 11% of the worldwide total. The Android devices combined reached almost 475,000 units in Q2 2010 from no units just a year ago.
Though Nokia devices continue to dominate China’s market, Canalys expects Android to be among the platforms that will drive growth in the coming quarters. Android devices held a 7% share in China this quarter. Also, HTC, the world’s leading Android device vendor, announced last week that it is entering the Chinese market with its own-branded smartphones.
Sources:
Weekend Mobile Industry Snippets!
According to a recent comScore reporton the US subscriber market share, BlackBerry’s RIM and Apple have both lost a small amount of market share while Android is bridging this gap between them.
The market share of RIM is 41.7%, Apple 24.4%, Microsoft 13.2% and Google 13%. These are typical numbers, but Google has increased their market share by 4%, suggesting a shift in the market pie. The previous comScore report also shows a 5.2% Google growth.
Microsoft has lost out the most, with a decrease of 1.9% in market share between February and May, though there might be changes when Windows 7 phones start shipping.
With the rapid growth that Google’s Android has recently shown, we will be anticipating changes in the numbers again in 2011.
Source:
http://androidheadlines.com/2010/07/android-bridging-gap-on-rim-and-apple-market-share.html
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
The Galaxy Q is coming on the heels of Samsung’s Galaxy S series of devices. Differences from the Galaxy S include a Qwerty keyboard, 3″ Super AMOLED screen and a size a bit smaller than the Galaxy S.
Here are the specifications of the Galaxy Q:
The Galaxy Q has also been touted as a BlackBerry competitor. There is no indication from Samsung about the release date of the Galaxy Q though.
Sources:
http://androidheadlines.com/2010/07/galaxy-q-specs-leaked.html
http://www.androidcentral.com/galaxy-q-specs-leaked
http://www.androidguys.com/2010/07/26/samsung-galaxy-specs-leaked/
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
Research in Motion today reported their first quarter earnings that didn’t match the analysts’ targets in terms of revenue. The company also announced a share repurchase plan. The company reported revenue of $4.24 billion, which is an increase of 24 percent from last year’s quarter. The total net income came in at $768.9 million, or $1.38 per share, up from the $1.12 per share reported in the year ago quarter. Analysts had been expecting earnings of $1.34 a share on revenue of $4.36 billion however.
Looking ahead, the company’s second quarter revenue was between $4.4 billion and $4.6 billion. The second quarter earnings are expected to be between $1.33-$1.40 per share. During the first quarter, the company added 4.9 million net new BlackBerry subscriber accounts. This brings the total BlackBerry subscriber account base to about 46 million. About 79 percent of the company’s revenue comes from device sales.
In a statement, company co-CEO Jim Balsillie said: “RIM achieved significant earnings growth and shipped a record 11.2 million devices during the first quarter, including its 100 millionth BlackBerry smartphone. We continue to be focused on growing our business globally and we believe that the range of exciting new BlackBerry products being released in the coming months will create significant opportunities to accelerate RIM’s growth in the second half of the fiscal year.”
In Larry Dignan’s preview yesterday, he predicted that the competitive heat in North America could force RIM to focus on the growth of the business globally. In fact, that seems to be where the company is headed. He also said that the forecast for the second quarter was especially challenging because of the timing of the release of new devices and the new BlackBerry OS 6.0. These introductions could bridge the close of the second quarter and opening of the third quarter.
Also, the new tiered data pricing plan by AT&T could boost BlackBerry sales because the caps on data usage could prompt consumers to embrace devices that are “more efficient” with data usage than others. BlackBerry customers could do just fine with the lower-tiered plan while owners of devices that run on other platforms could find themselves needing the higher-tier plan. RIM also plans to repurchase up to 31 million shares over the next 12 months. In the past 12 months, the company has repurchased about 18.2 million shares.
Source:
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/rim-earnings-focused-on-growing-global-business/36289
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
Appcelerator has just published the results from its most recent mobile developer survey and the results show what platforms and device types are most compelling to developers in the short term and for the long term as well.
In March, Appcelerator’s developer survey indicated that 53% of developers were interested in developing for the iPad. The most recent survey results however, show that that number has gone up drastically, with 84% of responding developers now saying they are “very interested” in developing for the iPad. Android held steady at 81%.
Appcelerator also asked developers to rate the major phone platforms, iOS, Android, BlackBerry and “Other” in a number of categories, including, “best app store,” “biggest market for consumer apps” and “most ‘open’ platform. Although Apple dominates the results, the last category: “This OS has the best long-term outlook.” shows that Android won this round with 54% of the vote. Developers think that Apple’s iOS has the best near-term outlook, but if we are talking about planning ahead for the future, Android’s openness and ability to run on many device types makes it a real contender in a larger picture.
Comparing the pros and cons of the different app platforms:
Source:
http://mashable.com/2010/06/23/mobile-developer-survey-iphone-4/
Daily Mobile Industry Snippets!
ThinkLink’s FaceCash mobile payment system allows you to pay for items just by scanning your phone and showing off the attached photo to confirm that it is your own money that you’re spending. This system supports BlackBerry, iPhone and Android devices. Simply sign up, link your FaceCash account to your personal checking and savings account, and you’re good to go with participating merchants. The apps can also store credit card numbers and banking information, making it easier to make payment even without your wallet. However, FaceCash currently only has merchants in California and nowhere else.
Source:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/06/17/facecash-mobile-payment-apps-are-like-real-money-only-with-your/
