Apple’s iOS gains market share in 2013 fourth quarter, Google’s Android drops

Apple Inc., which is considered to be one of the largest designers, manufacturers and sellers of personal computers and related personal computing and mobile communication devices along with a variety of related software, services, peripherals and networking solutions, announced that its iOS smartphone operating system made a considerable progress in the U.S. during the final quarter of 2013. At the same time, the share of the market served by the platforms of Google Inc., Microsoft Corp. and BlackBerry Ltd decreased.

ComScore Inc, a company considered as a reliable provider and source of digital business analytics, made a statement, saying that the market share of Googles Android operating system fell by 0.3 percentage point and reached 51.5%. According to ComScore Inc., Apple Inc. rose by 1.2 percentage point by the end of 2013 and got almost 42% of the market. BlackBerry Ltd, which recently hired Foxconn Group to build its devices, decreased by 0.4 percentage point and reached 3.4%. Microsofts market share fell by 0.2 percentage point to 3.1%.

The device markets worldwide are currently fighting to get a bigger market share, as the popularity of Internet-connected smartphones such as Apples iPhone or the Galaxy series of Samsung Electronics Co grows intensely among consumers. In a report from January the 31st, Bloomberg Industries analysts John Butler and Joshua Yatskowitz revealed that there had been some pressure on competing phones at multiple price points, provoked by the fact that Apple released its new high-end iPhone 5S and the cheaper 5C version for the Christmas shopping season.

In addition, last week after an official announcement by Google it became clear that the company agreed to sell its phonemaking Motorola Mobility unit to Lenovo Group Ltd in a deal estimated to 2.9 billion dollars. The Android system developed by Google currently runs on devices made by several companies, including some of Googles bigger rivals – Samsung, HTC Corp, LG Electronics Inc, etc. On the other hand, it is Apples iPhone which is the only smartphone running the companys proprietary iOS operating system.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, Apples iPhone turns out to be the most popular phone in the U.S., holding a 41.8% market share, while Samsung Electronics has won 26.1% of users. Both companies are reported to have gained 1.2 percentage point in market share during the fourth quarter of 2013.

Apple Inc.s shares rose by 1.45% on Tuesday to settle the session at $508.79, and its one-year change is 15.03% on the upside. The 45 analysts offering 12-month price targets for CNNMoney have a median target of $600.00, with a high estimate of $777.00 and a low estimate of $360.00. The median estimate represents a 17.93% increase from the latest closing price.