iPhone Accounts for 27% of All Smartphone Activations in Q3 2015: CIRP

Apple maintained its position in the US market, controlling roughly 27%, while Android accounted for 71% of smartphone activations between July 1 and September 30, 2015.

Ahead of Apple’s quarterly earnings call, Consumer Intelligence Research Partners (CIRP) polled US smartphone buyers to get an update of the current state of the smartphone market. iOS and Android continue to control more than 95% of US mobile phone activations, but there were some notable changes, the CIRP study reveals.

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First, the availability of the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus at the end of September didn’t materially affect its share in the quarter (Apple sold 13 million units worldwide within the first three days of availability), but this should change in the December quarter, CIRP’s partner and co-founder Josh Lowitz said.

Secondly, Samsung was the most popular smartphone manufacturer in the past quarter, accounting for 39% of all smartphone activations, up from 34% recorded in the June quarter of 2015. Apple maintained its market share of 27% in the quarter, and the company enjoys the most loyal customer base: 83% of Apple customers who purchased a new phone during the past quarter opted for an iPhone.

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“Apple enjoys the most loyal customers, with 83% of Apple owners who acquired a new phone during the quarter staying with Apple. With multiple brands of phones to choose from, Android customers can be loyal to the operating system while still changing brands of phone. In that market, only Samsung retains more than half of their customers (64%) who activate a new phone. LG, Motorola, HTC and other Android phone manufacturers are in a pool of brands that Android customers float among.”

CIRP based its findings on a survey of 500 US smartphone owners conducted between October 1 and 12, 2015, among users who purchased a new or used phone in the July–September 2015 period.

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