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Android phones outsell iPhone in U.S. in Q1

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-05-11 03:58

SAN FRANCISCO -- In the first quarter of 2010, sales of Google's Android moved past Apple's iPhone to become the number two smartphone operating system in the United States, research firm NPD reported on Monday.

Based on unit sales to consumers, Android had a 28-percent share on the U.S. smartphone operating system market last quarter, ahead of Apple's iPhone system, which was flat with a 21-percent share, according to the NPD report.

Research in Motion (RIM), maker of the BlackBerry smartphones, remained the market leader with a share of 36 percent, the report showed.

Android's momentum may signal a shake-up of the U.S. smartphone market, and its recent performance was due largely to promotions of Android phones by Verizon Wireless, the largest wireless carrier in the United States, NPD analysts said.

"In order to compete with the iPhone, Verizon Wireless has expanded its buy-one-get-one offer beyond RIM devices to now include all of their smartphones," Ross Rubin, executive director of industry analysis for NPD, said in a statement.

"As in the past, carrier distribution and promotion have played a crucial role in determining smartphone market share," Rubin noted.