Who is leading in the current two-horse race that is mobile OS ownership?
Current data from Kantar Worldpanel, a leading organizer of consumer panels, showed that during March and May of this year, Android’s market share of smartphone sales in Great Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Spain was 70.4%. Android’s share in each of these countries now ranges from 49.6% in Italy to a massive 84.1% in Spain.
Kantar Worldpannel also indicates that much of Android’s sales growth is being driven by consumers trading up from feature phones to smartphones; for example, almost half of all smartphones sold in Europe are a Samsung.
For startups developing mobile apps, this obviously means that Android devices aren’t the second choice behind iOS devices anymore. This is especially true when it comes to games. CNET Australia’s Crave editor Michelle Starr stated recently: “It is becoming rarer for the best games to release only to one platform. But there’s always going to be that division between the two platforms, with iTunes offering more carefully made titles overall, but Google Play offering the potential for much greater creative freedom and technical brilliance – depending on your device.”
The contrast between iOS and Android is also interesting when it comes to mobile gambling. This is one of the few areas where Google has taken a harder line than Apple in terms of approvals. While Apple has already allowed ‘real-money’ gambling apps into the App Store, Google no longer allows them in Google Play. That said, users can still download and install poker and casino apps to their Android from websites, separate to Google Play.
Be it as it is, the two-horse race for mobile OS ownership between Apple iOs and Google’s Android isn’t over yet. The only thing we’re sure of is that 5 years from now we’ll be able to name the clear winner of this race. But until the race is over, startups should clearly bet on both horses.
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