No one can deny Android is enjoying a fruitful time in the US at the moment, but its role on this side of the Atlantic appears far less solid.
That's according to the latest figures published by marketing research firm comScore's MobiLens venture.
The firm's numbers, which are based on usage statistics gathered through surveys, appear to paint a picture of two distinct smartphone markets.
Consumer demand in the US for Android, BlackBerry and iOS is contrasted by a prevalence towards Symbian powered Nokia handsets on this side of the Atlantic.
All eyes on Europe
Based on its most recent survey results, more than 50 percent of smartphone consumers in the EU5 UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy - own Nokia handsets, with phones running Symbian OS also accounting for 54.4 percent of the market.
Both Nokia and Symbian enjoy a strong hand across the board, with Symbian the market leader in all five markets, taking a 37.3 percent share in the UK.
However, Apple has made serious inroads of late. Its strongest market France where it currently holds a 31.6 percent share.
It's not too far behind in the UK either, where it sits second with a 29.6 share of the market a larger portion than its 23.8 percent share in the US, based on comScore's statistics.
Apathetic Android?
Most interesting, however, is the small market share Android and BlackBerry have in Europe's five biggest markets.
Only in the UK does Android have more than 10 percent of the smartphone usage market.
For example, in Germany, Microsoft's ailing Windows Mobile actually holds a larger share than Android and BlackBerry combined.
And in the two markets with the largest penetration of smartphone handsets Italy and Spain the two platforms barely register at all, with Symbian holding strong with around 70 percent of the market in each country.
ComScore's figures do proffer a word of warning for both Nokia and Symbian, however. Despite Android's supposed slow start, its share has grown by 5.6 percent since July 2009, while iOS is also up 5.3 percent.
In contrast, Nokia's share has fallen by 14.4 percent, suggesting its position at the top of the table is likely to come under severe threat over the course of the next 12 months.
[source: Mobile Entertainment]
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With a fine eye for detail, Keith Andrew is fuelled by strong coffee, Kylie Minogue and the shapely curve of a san serif font.
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