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Android market share jumps as BlackBerry slides; smartphones now owned by 1 in 3 Americans

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 7:20PM EST
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According to a new report from comScore, 1 in 3 Americans now own a smartphone. Google’s Android OS is ahead of the pack with a 38.1% share of the market during the 3-month period ending in May — up 5.1% from the last report in February. Apple’s iOS operating system jumped 1.4 percentage points to a 26.6% share, and RIM’s BlackBerry OS fell 4.3% to a 24.7% share of the market. Microsoft also dropped from a 7.7% share to a 4.8% share, and HP’s webOS fell from a 2.8% share to a 2.4% share in May. Manufacturer mobile subscriber market share remained relatively flat: Samsung still has a 24.8% share of the market according to comScore, followed by LG (21.1%, down 0.2 percentage points), Motorola (16.1%, down 1 percentage point), Apple (8.6%, up 1.2 percentage points), and RIM (8.1%, down 0.5 percentage points). Read on for the full release from comScore.

comScore Reports May 2011 U.S. Mobile Subscriber Market Share

Smartphones Reach Key Milestone; Now Owned by 1 in 3 Americans

RESTON, Va., July 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released data from the comScore MobiLens service, reporting key trends in the U.S. mobile phone industry during the three month average period ending May 2011. The study surveyed more than 30,000 U.S. mobile subscribers and found Samsung to be the top handset manufacturer overall with 24.8 percent market share. Google Android led among smartphone platforms with 38.1 percent market share.

OEM Market Share

For the three month average period ending in May, 234 million Americans ages 13 and older used mobile devices. Device manufacturer Samsung ranked as the top OEM with 24.8 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers, followed by LG with 21.1 percent share and Motorola with 15.1 percent share. Apple strengthened its position at #4 with 8.7 percent share of mobile subscribers (up 1.2 percentage points), while RIM rounded out the top five with 8.1 percent share.

Top Mobile OEMs

3 Month Avg. Ending May 2011 vs. 3 Month Avg. Ending Feb. 2011

Total U.S. Mobile Subscribers Ages 13+

Source: comScore MobiLens

Share (%) of Mobile Subscribers
Feb-11 May-11 Point Change
Total Mobile Subscribers 100.0% 100.0% N/A
Samsung 24.8% 24.8% 0.0
LG 20.9% 21.1% 0.2
Motorola 16.1% 15.1% -1.0
Apple 7.5% 8.7% 1.2
RIM 8.6% 8.1% -0.5

Smartphone Platform Market Share

76.8 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones during the three months ending in May 2011, up 11 percent from the preceding three month period. Google Android ranked as the top operating system with 38.1 percent of U.S. smartphone subscribers, up 5.1 percentage points. Apple strengthened its #2 position with 26.6 percent of the smartphone market, up 1.4 percentage points. RIM ranked third with 24.7 percent share, followed by Microsoft (5.8 percent) and Palm (2.4 percent).

Top Smartphone Platforms

3 Month Avg. Ending May 2011 vs. 3 Month Avg. Ending Feb. 2011

Total U.S. Smartphone Subscribers Ages 13+

Source: comScore MobiLens

Share (%) of Smartphone Subscribers
Feb-11 May-11 Point Change
Total Smartphone Subscribers 100.0% 100.0% N/A
Google 33.0% 38.1% 5.1
Apple 25.2% 26.6% 1.4
RIM 28.9% 24.7% -4.2
Microsoft 7.7% 5.8% -1.9
Palm 2.8% 2.4% -0.4

Mobile Content Usage

In May, 69.5 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers used text messaging on their mobile device. Browsers were used by 39.8 percent of subscribers (up 1.5 percentage points), while downloaded applications were used by 38.6 percent (up 2.0 percentage points). Accessing of social networking sites or blogs increased 1.8 percentage points to 28.6 percent of mobile subscribers. Game-playing was done by 26.9 percent of the mobile audience (up 2.3 percentage points), while 18.6 percent listened to music on their phones.

Mobile Content Usage

3 Month Avg. Ending May 2011 vs. 3 Month Avg. Ending Feb. 2011

Total U.S. Mobile Subscribers Ages 13+

Source: comScore MobiLens

Share (%) of Mobile Subscribers
Feb-11 May-11 Point Change
Total Mobile Subscribers 100.0% 100.0% N/A
Sent text message to another phone 68.8% 69.5% 0.7
Used browser 38.3% 39.8% 1.5
Used downloaded apps 36.6% 38.6% 2.0
Accessed social networking site or blog 26.8% 28.6% 1.8
Played Games 24.6% 26.9% 2.3
Listened to music on mobile phone 17.5% 18.6% 1.1