Popularity of Android Mobile Phones Creeping Up on Seasonal Favorite iPhone

The Apple iPhone has been a huge seller and a regular favorite in the mobile phone market ever since it first wowed consumers in 2007. But the new kid on the block, the Google Android mobile operating system, is already showing steady month to month growth in the marketshare. Looking at worldwide smartphone marketshare from November 2009 to February 2010, iPhone sales have remained the same while the Android has increased its handle on the global market from 16% to 24% (OS News).

Does Apple have anything to worry about? It still commands 50% of the worldwide smartphone market, but Android’s steady increase in popularity is certainly a reminder that stiff competition is out there. In fact, looking at figures for the U.S. only, the Android has already taken over 42% of the marketshare to iPhone’s 44%. With numbers this close, there is a high possibility of the new Android mobile operating system overtaking iPhone in the U.S., and maybe even eventually, the global market.

The Android’s competitive advantage is its operating system can function on multiple devices and carriers, while iPhone is housed within only one phone, and in the U.S. , only one carrier- AT&T. To date, there are twelve Android mobile phones across 32 different carriers! Another competitive edge is the Google Android mobile operating system is open source, meaning any phone developer can create applications to be released. iPhone is not- only Apple developers can choose which applications run. 

By using this competitive strategy, Google Android offers a unique selling position in the smartphone market. Had Android been first to market, it may not have pursued the same strategy of open systems.  Being late to the market, however, open systems became their differentiator.  It’s unlikely the Android would have been a success had they not sought to differentiate in a major way (other than price).

Creating competitive advantage is crucial for any company’s lifeblood.  Smart Advantage is a training and education based company that helps businesses create and identify their competitive advantage through research, business consulting, strategic planning, and marketing services. Use the Smart Advantage free tools to find out what competitive advantages your company may possess.

Tags: Business Consulting, Competitive Advantage, competitive edge, competitive strategy, creating competitive advantage, marketing services, Smart Advantage free tools, Strategic Planning, unique selling position

This entry was posted on Friday, April 16th, 2010 at 9:14 am and is filed under Business Consulting, Competitive Advantage, Strategic Planning. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.