Microsoft today told TechRadar that its Windows Phone devices outsold Apple’s iPhone in 24 markets. We did some digging to find out where exactly these figures came from, and it turns out the period in question is Q3 2013, with the original source being IDC.
“We’ve seen record sales of Windows Phone this holiday worldwide, nearly doubling phone sales during Christmas week (YOY),” a Microsoft spokesperson told TNW. “In the third quarter this year, according to IDC, Windows Phone reinforced its position as a top three smartphone operating system and was the fastest-growing platform among the leading operating systems with 156% year-over-year gain. Windows Phone is the number two smartphone operating system in 14 markets, and shipped more units than iPhone in 24 markets in Q3.”
It’s worth noting that Q3 2013 is the latest quarter IDC currently has figures for, and Windows Phone was third overall with 3.6 percent share. Apple’s iOS had more than three times Microsoft’s share at 12.9 percent while Google’s Android had a 22.5 times bigger slice of the pie
The real test, however, will be Q4 2013, which includes the holiday season. If more Windows Phone devices ship than iPhones in that quarter, then indeed there is a trend worth noting.
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Back in Q4 2012, IDC said Windows Phone outshipped the iPhone in seven markets: Argentina, Russia, South Africa, Ukraine, India, Poland, and a group of smaller countries, including Croatia. We’re trying to nail down the full list of 24 markets and we’ll update this article once we’ve got it.
Update: Microsoft has shared the full list. The 24 markets in which IDC says Windows Phone outshipped iPhone are as follows: Chile, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Egypt, Ecuador, Finland, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Kenya, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, and Vietnam.
In addition, here’s the list of market in which Windows Phone took second place: India, Mexico, Italy, Chile, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Poland, South Africa, Ukraine, Hungary, Finland, Czech Republic, and Greece. Where the lists overlap, Android was first in that market, otherwise it’s possible iOS or BlackBerry led.
See also – Nokia now controls 90% of the Windows Phone 8 market, with the low-end Lumia 520 grabbing over 35% share and Microsoft merges Windows Store and Windows Phone developer accounts, offers one lower annual price of $19
Top Image Credit: Vernon Chan
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