14 DAY TRIAL // It looks like the competition between Google's “stolen product” (Android) and Apple's iOS is close to resolve and things are not looking well for the latter.
Android is gaining market share with each financial quarter and the iOS seems to not be able to catch up with the former.
The last battle that Apple's iOS has just lost is the application download market share, which seems to have a new leader.
In this regard, ABI Research company states that the market shares of Android and iOS were 44% and 31% in Q2 2011.
One of the reasons behind Android's striking success is the platform open source strategy, which expanded its device install base.
“Being a free platform has expanded the Android device install base, which in turn has driven growth in the number of third party multi-platform and mobile operator app stores. These conditions alone explain why Android is the new leader in the mobile application market,” says Lim Shiyang, research associate, ABI Research.
ABI Research’s survey is part of the “Mobile Applications Market Data” that tracks mobile app downloads and revenues segmented by mobile operating system platform.
The company's database includes historical data, as well as forecasts for app downloads for all mobile operating systems available on the market.
Another reason for Android's quick ascension to pole position could be the number of Android smartphone shipments, which increased 36% in Q2 2011. Unfortunately, iPhone shipments decreased in Q2 2011 to 9% from 15% in Q1.
However, Android’s app downloads per user are still behind iOS’ by 2 to 1 currently, given Apple's attractive monetization strategy.
According to ABI Research, global app downloads by the end of 2011 are expected to reach 29 billion, whereas last year it only achieved 9 billion. In addition, the overall smartphone install base is expected to grow 46% in 2011.