Google's Android OS U.S. Marketshare Grows to 53%, iOS Up Dramatically Too

A new analysis of the smartphone market shows that Google’s Android operating system market share of sales grew to command more than half of the U.S. smartphone market, pulling 53 percent from January through October 2011. 

The study, by the NPD Group, a market-research company, also showed that Apple’s iOS share swelled to 29% during the same time period. Year-over-year, Android sales increased 28% while those of iOS-based devices increaded 38%.

Yet, even as Google and Apple saw growth, RIM’s BlackBerry OS share declined to 11%, despite once ruling the rankings. Sales declined 59%.

Change Is in the Air
Still, RIM, along with other companies that were formerly on top of NPD’s smartphone rankings, were cited as having made critical business decisions this past year in a quest to shore up their U.S. smartphone businesses. 

"The competitive landscape for smartphones, which has been reshaped by Apple and Google, has ultimately forced every major handset provider through a major transition," said Ross Rubin, executive director, Connected Intelligence for The NPD Group. "For many of them, 2012 will be a critical year in assessing how effective their responses have been."

RIM has reacted by switching to a QNX-based operating system, which will be called BlackBerry 10 when it debuts next year. Microsoft re-built its OS last year, moving from the business-oriented Windows Mobile to the more consumer-focused Windows Phone.

Operating systems such as Windows Phone, Symbian and webOS were rather irrelevant compared to Android and iOS, though Microsoft is noted as making decent progress. With previous quarters displaying the same trends, it is likely we will see a similar tendency heading into the new year. 

Source: NPD