Android Beats Apple in China

Google Inc’s Android mobile operating system (OS) was the top Smartphone platform in China last year, growing its market share by about 35 % in the world’s largest market for mobile phones, a Chinese technology research firm said.

At the end of 2011, Android had 68.4 % of the Smartphone OS market by the number of smart phones sold, up from 33.6 % at the end of the first quarter of last year, as Beijing-based research firm Analysys International said.

The cementing of Android’s dominance in China came at the expense of Finnish mobile phone maker Nokia which Symbian OS saw its market share more than halve to 18.7 % last year.

Apple Inc, whose iPhones are seeing strong demand from wealthier Chinese cities, posted a modest growth in 2011, with the market share of its iOs operating system rising from 4.1 % in the first quarter to 5.7 % at the end of the fourth quarter, as Reuters stated.

Apple has said that China, which has 988 million mobile phone subscribers, remains a key growth market for the company.

Android’s rise also comes as smart phones become cheaper in China due to the sales initiatives of local mobile device makers ZTE Corp and Huawei Technologies, who sign contracts with Chinese telecoms companies to offer cheap Android handsets.