Hasta La Gadget!

Apple’s iOS clung to the top-spot for smartphone platform share in the US in Q4 2012, new research suggests, maintaining more than half of the market, though the gap between AT&T and Verizon sales has narrowed. iPhones made up 51.2-percent of the US smartphone sales, Kantar World Panel claims, while Android dropped a little to 44.2-percent, a fall of just 0.6-percent year-on-year.

In comparison, Apple saw growth during the period, rising from 44.9-percent of the same market back in 2011. Windows Phone grew slightly, from 2.2-percent to 2.6-percent, but according to the research firm’s figures, RIM was the biggest marketshare loser, its BlackBerry platform dwindling from 6.1-percent in 2011, to just 1.1-percent in 2012.

As for share by carrier, AT&T maintains the top-spot for smartphone sales, though only just, with 33.3-percent of the market. Verizon has closed the gap, however, being just 1.3 points behind. Together, the two carriers represent the lion’s share of smartphone sales.

Interestingly, the raw figures don’t quite tell the whole story. According to Kantar, more than a third of new iOS users were transitioning from another smartphone platform, and Android deserters represent a greater chunk of those moving across. “19-percent of iOS sales over the last year were derived from Android users, compared to 9-percent in 2011″ analyst Mary-Ann Parlato said of the stats, with the trend most evident among Verizon subscribers, where 30-percent of iOS sales were of former Android users.

iPhone the Q4 smartphone champ says Kantar as Android deserters grow is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

UK mobiles retailer Phones 4u will launch a new network, LIFE Mobile, in March 2013, using EE‘s network as its backbone, though subscribers will miss out on 4G support initially. The deal, EE’s 25th MVNO (mobile virtual network operator) agreement, will at first offer only 2G/3G support to subscribers, presumably since the 4G carrier wants to keep its LTE goodness as an exclusive feature itself.

That will change later in the year, however, with EE saying that it “will make 4G available for LIFE Mobile customers later in 2013.” Until then, subscribers will get the run of EE’s combined Orange and T-Mobile UK airwaves, which were coupled together back when the Everything Everywhere partnership was settled.

Details on the LIFE Mobile service itself have not been revealed, with Phones 4u saying that it will have more news – including pricing – closer to launch. However, the MVNO is described as “great value” and to “include data packages as standard.”

Thanks to the combined network, LIFE Mobile will be able to boast 98-percent 3G coverage of the UK population when it launches. Meanwhile, Phones 4u will continue to sell service from the existing UK network players – including EE – alongside its own LIFE Mobile options.

Phones 4u’s LIFE Mobile hits UK in March with EE’s help (but no 4G) is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

AT&T is weighing European carrier acquisition options, insiders claim, hoping to boost its performance by reaching outside of the increasingly smartphone-saturated US market, despite the risks inherent in such expansion. Potential targets – with the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands cited as likely candidates – are being explored, sources tell the WSJ, though AT&T’s executive team isn’t entirely convinced that it’s even the best strategy. UK carrier Everything Everywhere – the UK’s first 4G network – and the Netherlands’ Royal KPN are tipped to be on the watch-list.

For those in favor of such a deal, it’s said that the lure of international expansion is its potential to unlock a new market of smartphone-upgraders and push AT&T’s strategy of tiered data plans. AT&T’s thinking, so the suggestion goes, is that while European carriers still rely on voice call and SMS messaging revenue, it could carve itself a new business by pushing 4G adoption and more revenue from data plans.

On the flip-side, however, is the potential risk of diluting AT&T’s focus on the US market. There, while AT&T spars with Verizon for the biggest subscriber base, the segment grows increasingly cut-throat, particularly as the potential market for smartphone and/or data plan adopters narrows. AT&T also faces increasingly organized competition, with US rivals being acquired by foreign firms, such as Softbank’s grab of Sprint.

No confirmation of whether any talks have begun, or which exact carriers are in AT&T’s sights, could be garnered, the newspaper reports. It’s also unclear as to how well AT&T’s traditional US pricing strategy – which demands both an upfront payment for the handset as well as a two-year agreement – would work in the European market, where it’s common for devices to be free-on-contract.

Nonetheless, word from the top is that international expansion is pretty much a certainty. “I think it is inevitable” AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson told Texas Monthly [subscription required] earlier in January, when asked whether an overseas acquisition was on the cards to ensure the company’s growth.

AT&T weighing Euro carrier acquisition tip insiders is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

RIM’s BlackBerry 10 platform will feature on Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile USA, all three US carriers have confirmed, with each of the networks publicly stating that they will be offering smartphones running the new OS. The new line-up, set to be officially revealed come January 30, with at least two new models demonstrated at the time.

“We’re hopeful its going to be a good device,” Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam said at CES this week, Reuters reports. “We’ll carry it.”

AT&T, meanwhile, were slightly more cagey, though did indicate that BlackBerry 10 would be offered if only to keep them competitive among upgraders. “It’s logical to expect our current [BlackBerry] customers will have the best BlackBerry devices to choose from in the future” CMO David Christopher suggested.

As for T-Mobile USA, CEO John Legere was the most enthusiastic of the three. “We’re extremely optimistic that it’s going to be a successful product” the chief exec insisted, saying that “our business customers are extremely interested in it.”

The announcement follows similar votes of confidence in BlackBerry 10 by all of the key UK carriers last month, including confirmation that 4G models would be broadly available.

Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile to offer BlackBerry 10 devices is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Despite T-Mobile USA being very comfortable with prepaid service, it hasn’t jumped in with both feet like its potential partner MetroPCS or its arch-rival Sprint. The company has just confirmed to FierceWireless that it’s not waiting for a merger to experiment further; it’s currently trialing GoSmart Mobile, a prepaid-only network that uses data speed, not caps, as the incentive to jump to higher tiers. Paying $30 per month offers unlimited calling and texting with no internet access whatsoever, while $35 a month includes unlimited 2G data and $45 upgrades to 3G. While that’s not as good a deal for data as Virgin Mobile, it’s better for those who truly prefer unlimited voice. The carrier hasn’t said how it would balance the new service with its MetroPCS, but it has some time to sort this out when any possible nationwide launch won’t take place until 2013.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, T-Mobile

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Via: FierceWireless

Source: GoSmart Mobile