14 DAY TRIAL // Android is the dominant operating system when it comes to smartphones, while iOS and Windows Phone follow far behind Google’s mobile platform.
With nearly 85% worldwide market share, Android seems unbeatable, so the only thing other OSes can do is eat at each other market share.
It’s been quite a few quarters since BlackBerry and Windows Phone switched places, with Microsoft’s operating system coming in third in market share.
However, this doesn’t really mean too much, as Windows Phone platform has yet to exceed 5% market share. Even though it’s ranked third OS, Microsoft hasn’t been able to improve Windows Phone sales worldwide yet, even after Nokia’s devices division.
Things aren’t looking much better in the tablet business, as IDC research company has just released its data for the 2014 tablet market.
Just like in the smartphone segment, Microsoft’s Windows is ranked third, while Android is still in the lead with a comfortable 67.7% market share.
iOS comes in second with only 27.5%, whereas Windows is third with just 4.6% market share. Once again, Microsoft did not manage to bring its OS above the 5% threshold, which seems to be a real nemesis for the Redmond-based company.
Still, the future does seem bright for Windows, as Microsoft’s operating system had a 67.3% YoY (year over year) growth, which is no short than amazing. Android’s market share in the tablet business also increased by 16% YoY, up to 67.7%.
In case you haven’t guessed it yet, the big loser is Apple’s iOS which lost 12.7% market share in about one year. The iOS tablet market share is now at 27.5% and there aren’t any indications that it could grow by much next year.
“The tablet market continues to be impacted by a few major trends happening in relevant markets. In the early stages of the tablet market, device lifecycles were expected to resemble those of smartphones, with replacement occurring every 2-3 years,” said Ryan Reith, program director with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers.
Basically, iOS has lost a lot of market share because customers who own an Apple tablet tend to keep their devices for more than 3 or even 4 years.
That does seem like a strange situation when a company releases such a high-quality product that can stand against the latest additions to the family, so that customers don’t feel urged to upgrade to a new tablet.
The price is another aspect that needs to be taken into consideration, as Apple’s tablets are always more expensive than their Android/Windows counterparts, so owners tend to be more attached to them.
