According to the respected research firm Gartner, smartphone and mobile device sales in the second quarter of 2011 are up an incredible 74%. Global sales of mobile devices to end users in general totaled 428.7 million units in the second quarter of 2011, for a 16.5 percent increase from the second quarter of 2010.
But it was the smartphone genre that really caught fire in terms of growth. “Smartphone sales continued to rise at the expense of feature phones,” said Roberta Cozza, principal research analyst at Gartner. “Consumers in mature markets are choosing entry-level and midrange Android smartphones over feature phones, partly due to carriers’ and manufacturers’ promotions.”
Google and Apple are the big gainers in the smartphone market according to Gartner. The combined share of iOS and Android devices in the smartphone operating system (OS) market doubled to nearly 62 percent in the second quarter of 2011, up from just over 31 percent in the corresponding period of 2010.
This growth has pushed the world of custom-built mobile applications out of the realm of being a good idea and into the realm of a necessity for any competitive business. Businesses with out a comprehensive strategy for growth that addresses custom-built mobile applications including iPhone applications, Android applications and applications for tablets will soon be left behind more savvy competitors that have embraced these markets.
A report published late Tuesday from Reuters states that sources close to Google will unveil a new mobile payment system this week. It is anticipated that Google will enable consumers to pay at checkout with their mobile phones instead of credit or debit cards. The mobile payments system will run on the Android operating system and is expected be available on phones from Sprint Nextel Corp.
Earlier this year, the Wall Street Journal reported that Google had been in talks with both MasterCard and Citigroup to lay the groundwork. If sources prove credible, Google is partnering with MasterCard Inc, the globe’s second-largest credit and debit card processing network, to make the mobile payments system happen.
Innovation in the mobile realm is continuing to leap forward and savvy businesses are leveraging mobile applications and useful tools such as payment systems to their advantage. Android applications and application developers should investigate options to integrate Google’s new mobile payments system to provided maximum usability to consumers.
The worldwide smartphone market is growing at a near meteoric rate. Are you prepared or preparing to capitalize on this trend? IDC’s research finds that smartphone vendors will ship around 450 million units this year… that’s 49% more than in 2010.
This is four times faster than the overall mobile phone market. The Android operating system is still predicted to continue its rapid growth and be the top operating system, with an expected 39.5% of the market by the end of the year and 45% by 2015. Much of this growth is fueled by consumer desire to have the additional functionality offered by smartphones. This creates a massive opportunity for forward thinking individuals and businesses.
iPhone applications developers and Android application developers worldwide are booked for months in advance to meet the growing demand for application software for these systems. And its not hard to see why, consumer demand is high and these applications offer an all new way to engage consumers. Savvy business owners are looking to mobile application developers to help them turn outdated advertising campaigns into engaging applications that interact with consumers on a personal device that is carried with them most of the day.
Already businesses are finding campaigns run via creative and practical mobile applications are paying huge dividends. There are several keys to success with mobile applications and a quality, professional application developer can help you put together a map to success that will help you translate your brand into a powerful mobile application.