Velti: Android market share plummets

Android may still hold the reins on the US mobile marketplace, but new data out from Velti shows the Android market share actually fell dramatically in 2012 - both in the US and internationally. While Android held a 61% share as of 2011, that share dropped to 37% in 2012.

by Kristina Knight

Velti's report credits the iPad Mini and iPhone 5 for helping Apple push ahead of Android for the year. On the Velti network, for example, researchers highlight the fact that iPad Mini served more total impressions at the end of November than Samsung's Galaxy Tab 10.1 did for the whole of 2012. Other interesting findings include:

• Samsung Galaxy S3 released in May 2012, iPhone 5 released in September but iPhone caught the number of Galaxy impressions by November 30
• Impressions served from photo apps increased nearly 400% (January 1 - November 30)
• Android users are more engaged with productivity apps (5.7% impression share
• AT&T serves 45% of mobile impressions (US)

"Looking back at 2012, we really see Apple's power over the mobile landscape,"said Krishna Subramanian, CMO of Velti. "A great example: despite the fact that China Mobile is the biggest carrier in China, it has low overall mobile impressions, without theiPhone, and advertisers in this market just aren't reaching consumers in the volume they could. This is incredibly valuable insight for marketers and brands. At the end of 2012, iOS devices held a 63 percent share of the market--so we know that Apple holds the key to reaching consumers."

The study also found that real time bidding is paying off - researchers say RTB-served ads have higher click through rates than other ads (via Velti Mobclix Exchange).