Android Smartphones: the overwhelming dominance of Samsung

From Strategy Analytics, global sales of smartphones running Android have generated $ 5.3 billion of revenue for manufacturers in the first quarter of 2013.

Android a 'cash machine' for manufacturers of terminals? Not necessarily. Because those profits are in fact monopolized by a manufacturer, Samsung, which has alone grossed nearly 95% of these revenues (94.7%).

Samsung could weigh on future developments of Android

Korean leaves therefore very little place for other manufacturers of smartphones. Over the period, Strategy Analytics class LG second with a market share of 2.5% and a turnover valued at $ 0.1 billion. Other manufacturers share therefore the balance, 2.7%, or approximately $ 100 million.

This market situation makes therefore, according to the firm, Google and Android, highly dependent on Samsung.

"We believe that Samsung generates more revenue and profit thanks to the Android platform that Google [Editor's Note: what confirmed Asymco in 2012 already].". Samsung has a high degree of market power and could use this position to influence the future direction of the Android ecosystem"judge Neil Mawston of Strategy Analytics.

What could weigh Samsung? For the analyst, the Korean could apply first, and before its competitors, of the last update of Android. A concession difficult to grant for Google, also owner of another constructor of smartphone Android, Motorola, redeemed in gold price ($12.5 billion).

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Key figures: sales of mobile and smartphones in the world