The NPD Group is reporting that Android was installed on 52 percent of smartphones sold during the second quarter of 2011. At the same time, iOS devices saw a slight increase to 29 percent, Blackberry fell to 11 percent and Windows Phone 7 and WebOS retained five percent.
“Google’s acquisition of Motorola shifts the balance of power in the handset-patent conflict between Google and its operating system competitors,” said Ross Rubin, executive director of industry analysis for NPD, on Google’s recent acquisition of Motorola. “Android’s momentum has made for a large pie that is attractive to Motorola’s Android rivals, even if they must compete with their operating system developer. Much as it did in the feature phone market in the RAZR era, Motorola is experiencing increased competition from Samsung and LG in the smartphone market,” said Rubin. “Closer ties to the heart of Android can help inspire new paths to differentiation.”
“Android is also leading the charge in the rapidly growing prepaid smartphone market,” Rubin said. “This was once a key segment for Motorola that the company has an opportunity to reclaim as prepaid carriers build their smartphone portfolios.”