BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, the Microsoft Windows Phone operating system will capture 4 percent share of 123 million smartphones sold in the United States market during 2012, rising steadily from 3 percent share in 2011. Nokia, HTC and Samsung will be among the main hardware vendors driving growth.
Scott Bicheno, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said, “Despite ongoing economic volatility, we forecast 123 million smartphones to be sold in the United States in 2012, growing 21 percent from 102 million units in 2011. Microsoft captured 3 percent share of all smartphones sold in the United States during 2011, rising steadily to a forecast 4 percent share in 2012. Nokia, HTC and Samsung have some of the biggest Microsoft smartphone portfolios at present and they will be three main hardware vendors driving growth this year.”
Neil Mawston, Executive Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “Microsoft is making a determined push to crack the United States because it is the most valuable and influential smartphone market in the world. However, Microsoft’s US smartphone market share remains relatively niche at present and breaking the stranglehold of leaders Android and Apple will not be easy. To grow further, we believe future versions of Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 platform will need to dramatically improve support for advanced technologies like multi-core chipsets, enhance the Marketplace app store, expand the number of phone models available from major partners like Nokia or Samsung, and consider reducing the license fees it charges per unit to smartphone makers.”
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Exhibit 1: United States Smartphone Sales Forecast by Operating System for 2012 1 |
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| United States Smartphone Sales Forecast by Operating System (Millions of Units) | 2011 | 2012 | |||||
| Microsoft | 3.5 | 5.0 | |||||
| Others | 98.3 | 118.0 | |||||
| Total | 101.8 | 123.0 | |||||
| United States Smartphone Sales Forecast by Operating System : % of Total | 2011 | 2012 | |||||
| Samsung | 3.5% | 4.1% | |||||
| Others | 96.5% | 95.9% | |||||
| Total | 100.0% | 100.0% | |||||
| Total Growth Year-over-Year % | ~ | 20.8% | |||||
The full report, Global Smartphone Sales Forecast by OS for 88 Countries: 2007 to 2017, is published by the Strategy Analytics Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, details of which can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/d9okv5r.
About Strategy Analytics:
Strategy Analytics is a global, independent research and consulting firm. The company is headquartered in Boston, USA, with offices in the UK, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea, India and China. Visit www.strategyanalytics.com for more information.
1 Numbers are rounded.