Google's Android knocks RIM off of their US marketshare throne

Posted by Ray Nicolini

At one point, RIM’s mighty US market share reign seemed unstoppable, that is, until the public was introduced to what is Android. With the iPhone only being offered on one carrier stunted their growth and really didn’t pose a huge threat to RIM. Then late November ‘09 the world was introduced to Android. By that time, T-Mobile had been sporting the dangerous Android for quite some time, but it laked the proper marketing. In November ‘09 Verizon got their hands on the Motorola Droid and fueled millions into marketing for their Droid line of phones which were direct straight at Apple’s iPhone. Once Android got the proper attention, RIM’s reign was given an expiration date. Nobody at that time really understood how popular Android was or was going to be, but many of us saw this coming. RIM, being the conservative company that they are, has been very painfully slow to change and keep up with this new rush of media-centric devices that are extremely user friendly.

With user satisfaction one a rapid decline, RIM has to do something to fix their own problem. I don’t expect another BlackBerry rush with the release of BlackBerry 6, but see it as a placeholder while they reinvent (at least I hope they reinvent). A lot of people have lost their trust in RIM and it will take more than a few changes here and there with a new UI to win people back over. Us BlackBerry fiends are excited and have yet to jump ship, but many of us have had a sweet taste of Android. I love both Android and BlackBerry, but BlackBerry is my workhorse. I’ve been using them for a long time now, and it’s going to take more than a fun toy like Android to make me jump ship.

In the US, Android is now holding a whopping 34 percent marketshare with RIM in a close second at 32 percent. Apple is still trailing in third at 21.7 percent. All three manufacturers experienced growth. Apple saw a 61 percent year-over-year growth, RIM saw 41 percent, and Android saw an amazing 886 percent year-over-year growth. The reporting was done by Canalys and to see the full press release, visit the source link. RIM has a lot to learn, and hopefully this is a huge eyeopener for them.

via: Engadget