Smartphones Becoming Dominant

David M Ross • January 4, 2011 [print-me target="div.post-title, div.post-meta, div.post-body" do_not_print=".twitterLink, .sharedaddy, .jp-relatedposts, .fb-comments-title, .fb-comments-text, .fb-comments, .post-comments" tag="span" class="print-me-container"]

According to market research company Nielsen (1/3/11), the Apple iPhone operating system remains the top mobile OS in the US enjoying a 28.6% market share. Closely following the Cupertino giant is Google’s Android system with 25.8%. Blackberry, once the top dog in the mobile platform race, slides from 33% in June 2010 to 26.1% in the current study.

According to Nielsen, 45% of customers ready to purchase a mobile phone opted for a smartphone instead of a feature phone. Also notable is a finding that among recent smartphone acquirers, 40% chose Android over the last six months, making it the leading choice.

Strong smartphone demand benefits the music industry since the handheld devices encourage and facilitate consumption of music, video and social network engagement.