Apple iPhone may capture 26 percent of smartphone buyers - report
While it has yet to ship its first cellphone, Apple is already tied with BlackBerry producer RIM in desirability, a just-published study reveals.
Conducted in April, the study shows that just over a quarter of all potential buyers in the consumer field are set on buying the Apple phone when it launches this month. The figure is an exact match for future Canadian rival Research in Motion, whose BlackBerries have held their appeal in recent months.
Potentially more impressive is Apple's seeming foothold on the business market, ChangeWave says. Though the research firm conducted its study before reports surfaced of corporate account bans that prevent the iPhone from selling directly to businesses in the early phase of its release, findings from a corporate analysis in May point to 9 percent of study members preferring the new device to established rivals.
Apple is also causing a shockwave effect in the industry as a result, according to the report. Motorola, Nokia, and Palm have all seen rapid declines in their attractiveness to buyers since the end of 2006 — falling to 5, 3, and 10 percent respectively in the number of planned consumer phone purchases at the time of the April poll. And while RIM has cemented its position in the office world, climbing to 67 percent of all smartphones sold, Apple's presence may sap the strength of Motorola (16 percent) and Palm (19 percent), either of which "may well be in danger" of eroding marketshare, ChangeWave claims.
Irrespective of the business or home spheres, however, the study portrays the mid-2007 smartphone industry as a two-man race, with Apple set to outrun current followers and giving RIM genuine competition.
"Going forward, the Apple iPhone launch poses an enormous challenge to Palm, Motorola and Nokia — all of whom can be expected to record lows," the report says. "So whether talking about the consumer or the corporate [smartphone] space, it's quite clear that the iPhone spells trouble for many of the industry's players."
83 Comments
If the iPhone has all the announced features and the stability of OS X, the rest of the competition, if you can call them that, should be quivering in their feet.
BUT, Apple has yet to pierce into the Enterprise level... That is their biggest weakness, and a big one at that. You can be sure that Palm, BB, etc. will all be trying hard to keep the iPhone from being supported from enterprise applications
If the iPhone has all the announced features and the stability of OS X, the rest of the competition, if you can call them that, should be quivering in their feet.
BUT, Apple has yet to pierce into the Enterprise level... That is their biggest weakness, and a big one at that. You can be sure that Palm, BB, etc. will all be trying hard to keep the iPhone from being supported from enterprise applications
Computer sales at the enterprise level are a commodity at best. While the volume sales to enterprise customers could lower component costs, I just don't see Apple chasing it.
You really can't blame them; with 7.6% market share (revealed today) in the US, but with 50% of Microsoft's net income, Apple seems to have their business plan down cold!
It is now starting to sink in.
Remember, boys and girls, Apple gets a (as of yet undisclosed amount) kickback from every iPhone sold, from every month's bill. And that's something that no other handset maker gets. So when they have sold 10 million iPhones they will be receiving, oh maybe, $300 Million per year in free money from royalties. Is it any wonder Verizon said "No" Boy will they be sorry.
And don't forget, Apple sells an enterprise server, Xserve. It would be a snap for them to develop a mail server app and give it away with every Xserve sold. But let's worry about the consumer end first.
At current growth rate Apple Inc. will PASS Microsoft in market capitalization in about 5.5 years. Whether or not they pass them in PC market share. And that's assuming MSFT's share price doesn't decline from here. Why would it go up, if they are loosing market share to Apple?
This is a multi-year Steve Jobs renaissance, and it's just getting started.
You know, that's one cross-over I hadn't thought of, but makes perfect sense: deploy custom PBX-esque servers on Xserve for business to have their own communications channels... via iPhones. Nice. Further relegating the cell carriers to Just Another ISP at the same time... even better.
The iPhone is gonna be a big one, no survey can prove of deny that, it's just in the stars. In other news; my damn nitro car wont start!