According to the latest NPD figures, the Android operating system has finally overtaken the iPhone for the number two spot in the U.S. smartphone market share, taking 28 percent in the latest quarter.
RIM’s BlackBerry OS remains the clear leader at 36 percent, with the iPhone OS in third place at 21 percent for the Q1 2010.
“As in the past, carrier distribution and promotion have played a crucial role in determining smartphone market share,” adds Ross Rubin, executive director of industry analysis for NPD. “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.”
Some of the prominent phones to be used in the BOGO promotions were the Motorola Droid and the BlackBerry Curve, both strong sellers.
Overall, AT&T subscribers accounted for 32 percent of all smartphone sales with Verizon close behind at 30 percent.
Adds Rubin: “Recent previews of BlackBerry 6, the recently announced acquisition of Palm by HP, and the pending release of Windows Phone 7 demonstrates the industry’s willingness to make investments to address consumer demand for smartphones and other mobile devices. Carriers continue to offer attractive pricing for devices, but will need to present other data-plan options to attract more customers in the future.”
Result for: promotions
Video game industry analyst Michael Pachter has said today that he expects the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 to receive price cuts again this year, which will lead to the Wii being forced into a price cut as well, in order to keep the remaining price advantage it has over its rivals.
“The Wii enjoyed a $350 price advantage over the PS3 at launch, and a $150 advantage until September. Now, the gap has narrowed to $100, with the feature-laden PS3 a tempting purchase for prospective console households,” says Pachter.
“The holiday Wii sales boost was primarily attributable to a $50 gift card promotion offered by Wal-Mart; while we expect similar promotions at holiday next year, we expect the other consoles to be lower-priced by then, further eroding the Wii’s competitive price advantage.”
Pachter also says that the DSi handheld is most likely overpriced, compared to the iPod Touch, which offers a plethora of free apps as well as better music and video playback capabilities.
“It appears that piracy in Europe and some substitution of iPod Touch games has impacted DS software sales more than we expected, and we have adjusted our estimates for FY:11 to account for further pressure,” said Pachter, noting that guidance had to be reduced for DS software.
Result for: promotions
Best Buy has started a promotion this week that will offer a free $50 gift card with the purchase of an Xbox 360 and an additional 360 Wireless Controller. The promotion is for the Elite Winter Bundle.
Amazon has slashed the price of the Xbox 360 Arcade to $180, a $20 price cut.
Additionally, a Xbox Live 12-Month Gold Card was dropped to $40, down from $50.
