The battle for third spot in the smartphone race is heating up in the US, with numbers published by Kantar Worldpanel suggesting Windows Phone has overhauled BlackBerry's lead in the region.

The company claims that, other than Android, Microsoft's platform was the only operating system to grow is share in America throughout 2012, with Google's OS toppling iOS to reclaim its position at the top of the tree.

Former chart topper BlackBerry, however, saw its dwindling share drop to just a third of what it was at the start of 2012, corresponding with slow but steady growth for Windows Phone.

Counting the cost

The secret to Android's success, Kantar analyst Mary-Ann Parlato told VentureBeat, is that it outperforms iOS when it comes to price.

"This latest period saw a significant price drop to $95 for Android, while iOS increased slightly to $146," Parlato said of Android's recent ascent.



For the battle for third spot, however, updates appear to be key. Windows Phone share – which still only sits at just over 3 percent – was boosted by the launch of Windows Phone 8 models in late 2012, while – in contrast - BlackBerry 10 didn't roll out until the end of January 2013.

The real test will be how the two platforms before during the next 12 months, and whether any can make inroads on the mammoth shares boasted by both Android and iOS.

Across the pond

Numbers sourced from the UK by Kantar, however, tell a similar story.

The firm estimates Microsoft's share jumped to over 6 percent for the first time in the three months to January 2013, with the platform now "selling in significant quantities."

"Nokia is spearheading this growth, with the Lumia 800 the leader among the Windows handsets," added global insights director Dominic Sunnebo.

"However, it is not the only manufacturer benefitting from the increasing popularity of Windows. HTC’s 8X is now the third best-selling Windows device in Great Britain, demonstrating the clear cross-manufacturer opportunity of the platform."

Sunnebo claims 17 percent of new Windows Phone owners switched from Android, which offers Microsoft much hope for the years ahead.

"The fact that nearly one in five new customers switched from an Android device should give Microsoft, and its partners, confidence that its OS has what it takes to bring the fight to more established platforms.

"As almost 30 percent of its customers switch from rival OS’s, the worry that Microsoft will have to rely on attracting the dwindling pool of first time smartphone buyers to drive future growth is reduced."

[source: Kantar Worldpanel]