New in OS X: Get MacRumors Push Notifications on your Mac

Resubscribe Now Close

Strong iPhone 6 and 6 Plus Sales Lead to Smartphone Market Share Growth for Apple

Wednesday January 7, 2015 6:53 am PST by Mitchel Broussard
The latest smartphone sales data released today from Kantar Worldpanel ComTech highlights good news for Apple on the strength of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus launch, with Apple gaining share year-over-year in every country surveyed except for Japan.

The report, focusing on the September-November 2014 period, points out that Android market share dropped in most European markets and saw its first decline in the U.S. since September 2013. In the surveyed period, Apple reached 42.5 percent of UK sales, up 12.2 percentage points from the same time in 2013.

kantar_nov_2014
In the U.S., the Cupertino-based company's share of smartphone sales grew 4.3 points to reach 47.4 percent of the market, an unsurprising performance given the strong early sales of the company's latest iPhones. More data from Apple on October-December iPhone sales will be announced later this month when the company releases its quarterly earnings report.

Apple's strong performance is being attributed in part to enthusiasm for the redesigned bodies and larger screens of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, with the iPhone 6 leading the smartphone pack during the time period.
“The iPhone 6 was the best selling phone in the three months through November 2014, capturing 19% of smartphone sales”, said Milanesi. Verizon and AT&T made up 57% of iOS sales while Verizon and T-Mobile were the top two carriers for Android accounting for 33.7% of all Android smartphones sold.
Despite declines in many markets, Android remains the dominant platform in Europe with 69.9 percent of the market, although that number is down 3.2 percentage points from the same period in 2013. Kantar also notes that customers switching from Android to iOS remained at a steady 18 percent from 2013 to 2014, suggesting Apple's larger-screened phones have yet to represent significant motivation for switchers.
[ 84 comments ]


Top Rated Comments

(View all)

Avatar
TopToffee
51 months ago
I always find it staggering when I see the UK figures.

Maybe it's a geographical thing, but I see infinitely more iPhones out and about than I do Androids.

Though I suppose that could be influenced if iPhone users just spend longer actually USING their phones than Androiders
Rating: 14 Votes
Avatar
TallManNY
51 months ago

I always find it staggering when I see the UK figures.

Maybe it's a geographical thing, but I see infinitely more iPhones out and about than I do Androids.

Though I suppose that could be influenced if iPhone users just spend longer actually USING their phones than Androiders


That is right. Many Android phones are bought by folks who don't use their phones very much. It makes sense for those users to save money and buy a slightly gimped product. For the phandroids, I'm not talking about the flagship Androids, I'm talking about the no name smaller devices. Those phones just sit in pockets and you don't see them.
Rating: 12 Votes
Avatar
PJWilkin
51 months ago

These numbers mean nothing in 2015.


As does your comment
Rating: 9 Votes
Avatar
lkrupp
51 months ago
What amazes me is that Apple has chosen to leave the low end to the Android universe and yet commands this kind of market share overall. One would think the high end would limit Apple’s presence to also-ran but the opposite is true.

The only success metric the competition can tout is market share. Apple controls the rest of those metrics by a wide margin. Developers are still, to this day, iOS first and Android later. This is NOT the Windows/Mac debacle of the 90’s in terms of software availability. The talking heads were wrong and the Fandroids here on MacRumors are left with touting the TOTAL OEM output of all manufacturers when making their point.
Rating: 8 Votes
Avatar
timber
51 months ago

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.

Probably because in Europe (or in most European countries) users are exposed to the phones true price and Apple's phones are in reality very expensive.

Paying 700, 800, 900 or around 1000 euro for a phone is just crazy for a lot of people. You could buy 2 iPads or almost a MBA with that kind of money.

Nowadays no phone is that good to deserve that premium expecially in Europe where Apple's services and ecosystem are a lot worse than in the USA. My country doesn't even have Siri... At least the Germans haver that.
Rating: 7 Votes
Avatar
MH01
51 months ago

I always find it staggering when I see the UK figures.

Maybe it's a geographical thing, but I see infinitely more iPhones out and about than I do Androids.

Though I suppose that could be influenced if iPhone users just spend longer actually USING their phones than Androiders


It would also be very dependent on where you live, hangout, and work in the UK.

I live in London, and definitely see more android devices on a daily commute.

----------

These numbers mean nothing in 2015.


Historical data is not useful for analytics?
Rating: 6 Votes
Avatar
MH01
51 months ago

I'm kind of surprised that the USA gains were so small, to be honest. It seemed like everyone that I knew got an iPhone 6.


The USA has a lot of people ;)
Rating: 5 Votes
Avatar
Narcaz
51 months ago

The number that always confuses me is Germany. Why does Android do so well there and iOS do so poorly? I understand in China it's because most people there have relatively little discretionary income so buy cheaper products, but my understanding was Germans were comparable to those in the UK and US in terms of discretionary income. Is there a major German phone manufacturer that many Germans buy out of national pride or something? I thought the major Android manufacturers were all either Asian or US.


Funny. No there is nothing like a Siemens or BMW phone. Apple products are simply overpriced in Germany. 16GB iPhone 6 = 828$ (including taxes). Best retail price is 768$ while you can get a Samsung Galaxy S5 for 496$. 128GB storage versions from the 6Plus are even worse and are sold for a hefty 1183$. The problem for Apple is that carrier stopped a few years ago the subsidization of cellphones. So most private customers pay a high initial fee or buy without contract. And Apple doesn't have a huge traditional user base over here. They waited until the iPhone 4 to offer it without a 2 year T-Mobile contract.
Rating: 5 Votes
Avatar
stewy
51 months ago

Makes sense. Android is a cheap way to dip ones toes in the smartphone world, but ultimately people want more than what an ad company can give them. Over time Apple keeps selling more and more...


Whatever you have to tell yourself dude.
Rating: 4 Votes
Avatar
kdarling
51 months ago

Probably because in Europe (or in most European countries) users are exposed to the phones true price and Apple's phones are in reality very expensive.


This. It's all about upfront cost.

Surprisingly, it doesn't seem to matter if a person is poor or wealthy. The overwhelming majority of people all around the world do not like to pay more than about $250 upfront.

This price barrier has been true for at least a half decade, if not more.

Last time I checked, over 90% of iPhones were sold in countries with subsidies (or loan programs) which lower its upfront price to anywhere from zero to a couple of hundred dollars.

In places without subsidies, expensive phones do not sell very well, because when paying full cost upfront, people are forced to take a harder look at cost vs features.



The absolute numbers go up and down depending on the quarter, but the relative subsidy effect is always the same.
Rating: 4 Votes

[ Read All Comments ]