Windows Phone to Top iOS in 2015, iSuppli Says

Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system is set to become the second best mobile platform in the world in the next three years, a recent report from iSuppli suggests.

The newly launched Nokia Lumia 900 is the first handset in a series that will re-establish the platform as a market leader, the firm notes.

Moreover, the company believes that Windows Phone will manage to top Apple’s iOS platform and take the second place on the market in 2015.

“Largely based on Nokia’s strong support, Windows Phone is set to regain the No. 2 rank in the smartphone operating system in 2015,” iSuppli notes.

The Finnish-based mobile phone maker was once the leading smartphone maker in the world, but it lost the position “because of rising competition from Google Inc.’s Android and Apple Inc.’s iOS,” the research firm explains.

In 2015, Windows Phone will enjoy a market share of 16.7 percent in the smartphones segment, marking an impressive increase from the only 2 percent it accounts for at the moment, data from the IHS iSuppli Mobile & Wireless Communications Service at information and analysis provider IHS shows.

Microsoft’s mobile operating system will get in front of Apple’s iOS, though it will remain behind Google’s Android platform.

Starting with the current year, Nokia is expected to account for the most Windows Phone sales around the world. 50 percent of all Microsoft OS-based handsets sold in 2012 will be Nokia devices.

The percentage will increase to 62 percent in 2013, but will start to decline in 2014, as more handset vendors come out with Windows Phone-based devices. However, Nokia will be the main driver in Windows Phone’s rise, and all will kick off with the release of Lumia 900.

“One of the hottest new products unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show was the Lumia 900, a Windows Phone-based smartphone sporting a flashy set of features that makes it competitive with the best alternatives offered by the Android camp,” said Wayne Lam, senior analyst for wireless communications at IHS.

“This hot product represents Nokia’s first step to reclaim its market share. Combined with Nokia’s efforts to drive the development of the Windows Phone ecosystem, the Lumia 900 and its successors will help Microsoft to reclaim its No. 2 ranking in smartphone operating system market share in 2015.”