Cheshire Cat Photo Blog(...said the Cat: 'we're all mad here....')

According to new data from Kantar Media, the iPhone overtook Android in the U.S. in October. Android has a 46.7% share of smartphone sales in the U.S., but very strong sales of iPhone 5 drove Apple to a 48.1% share of smartphone sales! SFGate.com says:

Kantar analyst Dominic Sunnebo says in a release, “The last time we saw iOS overtake Android in the US was when the iPhone 4S was released and Apple managed to retain its lead for three consecutive periods. This time we predict that Apple will beat its previous high of 49.3% and achieve its highest ever share of the US smartphone market within the next two periods.”

As well as Apple is doing in the U.S., it’s doing poorly in Europe. According to Kantar, Android is 73.9% of sales in Germany and 81.7% of sales in Spain.

Why?

In Spain the economy is weak; in Germany the economy is strong. In BOTH of these countries, however, the carriers do not provide the same sort of subsidy that they provide in the U.S., and customers must pay FULL PRICE for their phone up front, along with the prepaid plans. Customers usually choose a cheaper phone (Android) over a more expensive one.

It appears that when price is not an issue, people will choose iOS over Android, but Android takes market share when price IS an issue. If Android can lock in these customers, over the long run, Apple will lose them.

If Apple wants to go for market share, then it’s going to have to figure out how to make a less-expensive iPhone. That means, potentially, a hit to Apple’s margins. To date, it’s addressed the lower-end market by offering older models for sale, rather than designing a brand-new, low-end phone. Apple has thus far chosen profit margin over market share, and it has been the right choice.

Apple analyst Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray has finally come out and said it: He thinks Apple’s stock will be at $1,000 in 2014, making it the world’s first trillion dollar company.

I love it when I get to talk about such things with some of the very stupid (they don’t take in data) people I have met along the way in high tech. 😉

-Bill at

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