Google dominates the smartphone market by powering the maximum number of smartphones with its Android mobile OS. The web giant should have nothing to fear from its rivals in this category, but analysts say Android has hit its peak and further growth is unlikely.
Based on the latest survey by research firm Strategy Analytics, Android powered 84 percent of all smartphones shipped globally during the third quarter this year. While this percentage is significantly higher compared to its closest competitor Apple, which stands at 12 percent in the Q3 2014, Google lost 1 percent share from its second quarter numbers this year, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal on Sunday.
"Android's global smartphone market share is peaking," Neil Mawston, executive director of Strategy Analytics, said in a statement, The Journal reported. "Unless there is an unlikely collapse in rival Apple iPhone volumes in the future, Android is probably never going to go much above the 85% global market share ceiling."
Besides Google and Apple, Microsoft and BlackBerry take up a small share in the global mobile operating system market. During the third quarter this year, Microsoft's Windows Phone had 3 percent of smartphones shipped globally while BlackBerry stood at 1 percent.
Even though Google appears to have reached its saturation, analysts at Strategy Analytics do not fear for Google's continued dominance in the industry. According to the report, the smartphone market is exploding with an expected 12 percent increase in shipment volume next year. Also, Google's open nature for Android allows third-party companies to build their own "forked" version of the platform that helps gain a significant reach in the industry. Amazon is a good example for running devices with forked Android version on Kindle Fire devices. Sales of forked devices accounted for 37 percent in the third quarter, a decline from second quarter's 39 percent.
