Android Chinese Market Domination: 50% Of Chinese Smartphone Market Owned

During the Google I/O conference the big reveal was the 900 million Android OS activations globally which won big applause from the audience. However Google pointed out there were still billions left who were not using their devices where penetration was a mere 10%, particularly true in developing markets like India and China.

Now Google can be pleased with the news that they have 51.4% of all smartphones owned in China with Samsung having the largest share at 15.2%. Craig Yu, consumer insight director at Kantar Worldpanel ComTech said, "Samsung has recently launched the Galaxy S4, selling over 10 million units globally in less than one month. We predict the launch of Galaxy S4 Mini in the not too distant future will greatly increase its product reach in urban China."

This is reflective of the high demand and rapid growth in smartphones among Chinese buyers. Smartphone ownership in China is at 42%, largely due to owners of feature phones upgrading to smartphones. Yu says, "Feature phones are losing their price advantage as Android smartphones are rapidly becoming more affordable and delivering better value. We expect to see accelerated smartphone adoption in China in the coming months."

Could this mean that Android is ready to pull ahead of the iOS? Here’s what a study says:

“At the end of March 2013, Android widened its lead of Smartphone operating systems with a 51.4% market share, an increase of 2.8% compared to the previous quarter. Second and third place was taken by Symbian and iOS, whose market share is 23% and 19.9% respectively. Symbian has declined 2% in the last quarter, whilst iOS remained resilient. Following the same trend, Symbian looks likely to lose its second place to be the third in the next 2 quarters.”

At least in China, Google and Android look dominant but Apple could easily make a comeback.