Data & Research

No BlackBerry bounce back as Windows Phone secures third spot in smartphone race

But Gartner claims Android still in charge

No BlackBerry bounce back as Windows Phone secures third spot in smartphone race
The latest numbers published by research firm Gartner have cast more light on the continued demise of BlackBerry, just weeks after the firm laid off 250 staff to 'increase efficiency'.

For the first time, Gartner's numbers place Windows Phone, and not BlackBerry, as the third biggest smartphone platform on the market, with Microsoft clawing together a 3.3 percent share.

The rise of Windows Phone comes as BlackBerry's share falls away, down almost 50 percent year on year to a 2.7 percent share.

Microsoft rising

Most alarmingly for BlackBerry, the share drop comes despite the much-publicised launch of BlackBerry 10 – the firm's most recent operating system, designed to help the Canadian giant take on Apple and Google at the top of the table.

Indeed, Gartner's numbers suggest Android has extended its lead at the top, with a reported market share of 79 percent.

Apple continues to consolidate its position also, sitting in a comfortable second place with a 14.2 percent share of the market.



"While Microsoft has managed to increase share and volume in the quarter, Microsoft should continue to focus on growing interest from app developers to help grow its appeal among users," said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner.

Smartphone takeover

The report also claims that smartphone sales have finally surpassed feature phones sales. Worldwide mobile phone sales totaled 435 million units in Q2 2013, with smartphone sales accounting for 225 million – or 52 percent - of those units.

Said figure marks a drastic increase in smartphone sales since year on year, with the amount of units sold jumping by 46 percent.

In terms of brand power, Samsung maintained its position at the top of the global smartphone market, with its share hitting 31.7 percent - up by 2 percent since Q2 2012.

Once again, Apple sits firmly in second place with a market share of 14.2 percent: a figure that easily eclipses the 5.1 percent held by third placed LG, but falls drastically short of Samsung's market leading share.

[Source: Gartner]

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