Microsoft’s U.S. smartphone market share down 35% since WP7 launch

By Tom Warren, on 6th Jul 11 10:30 am with 56 Comments

The latest figures from comScore show that Microsoft’s U.S. smartphone market share has dropped again in May.

The figures, released by comScore on Tuesday, confirm that Microsoft’s market share has dropped by 35% since Windows Phone 7 devices went on sale in the U.S. during November 2010. The software giant held 9% market share in November 2010 which has since dropped to just 5.8% in May 2011. Despite the gloomy figures, Microsoft has been pushing forwards with a marketing blitz recently for Windows Phone. The software giant created a dedicated Samsung Focus commercial recently to ask “what if?” and took over Times Square with a giant Windows Phone advert.

The figures might paint a bad picture but Microsoft is banking on Nokia to help it generate significant interest during 2012. IDC predicts Windows Phone 7 will account for over 20% market share, above iOS’s 15% in 2015. The prediction is based on the significant implications of the recent Nokia and Microsoft deal. Nokia said recently that it plans to ship Windows Phone branded devices to developers when they are available later this year.

Microsoft’s developer story is strong however. The software giant recently passed 25,000 applications and is expected to hit around 40,000 apps in October. Windows Phone 7 launched on October 26 with 1,000 applications available. Six months later and the platform has increased over 10 fold. Microsoft appears to be building up a good momentum amongst application developers. The software giant added 3,000 applications in March alone after reaching its 10,000 milestone in early March.

Microsoft is currently hard at work on “Mango”, its next major release of Windows Phone. Microsoft has promised to ship “Mango” later in the year. “Mango” is currently in the final finishing stages at Microsoft.  Microsoft unveiled a number of new Windows Phone Mango features at a VIP event in May. Mango will include over 500 new features ranging from multitasking through to some major Bing search improvements. For more information on Mango check-out our mango section.

Microsoft U.S. smartphone market share - comScore

  • Anonymous

    I’m sure this is the calm before the storm. A LOT of users are waiting for Mango hardware and software. Either from Nokia or the new stuff from Samsung or HTC with front facing camera’s.

    • Anonymous

      Yeah.. They are all waiting for the Mango update.. including me.. maybe new devices from samsung,htc or nokia also taken into considerations..

    • Anonymous

      Same here, I’m waiting to.

    • Et Jay

      Agree with you Duke, iPhone 5 will be worth the wait.

    • Et Jay

      Agree with you Duke, iPhone 5 will be worth the wait.

    • Andy UK

      Go troll somewhere else iPhan

    • http://twitter.com/2thirtyone Chris Weaver

      You already own the iPhone 5… since it will be just like an iPhone 4, which was a lot like iPhone 3, oh and iPhone 2… and…

    • Anonymous

      Same here, I’m waiting to.

    • Shiro

      Count me in on this. I’m waiting.

    • LWSJR

      This is probably true for consumers who visit tech sites such as this; however, general consumers (which far outnumber ‘techies’) would not necessarily be privy to ‘Mango’.  It’s safer to say that many are already committed – via the ecosystem of their current phone,  2 year contract, or perhaps the economy simply doesn’t afford many to take on the added expense of data.  There simply isn’t one specifi reason why WP sales aren’t through the roof, but rather a combination of reasons depending on each individual consumer.

    • http://twitter.com/oslicek David Petrla

      2year contracts expire every 2 years. :-) There’s always somebody whose contract is going to expire. I just hope Microsoft will target the back-to school season with Mango, not Christmas season.

      This is extremely uphill battle and Microsoft has done the unprecedented thing – has broken the backward compatibility. So we WP7 early adopters were beta testers in practice. But things are different now – Windows Phone is going to have some 30 000 apps in September. Also, Microsoft has a dedicated hardware partner now.

      The most important remaining hurdle is the sales personnel animosity towards WP. Microsoft MUST resolve this issue and sales will follow. 

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_VGQMRQOQYPZHFOGRIZ53F646KU Not ice_fusion.

      I’m waiting as well.

    • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_VGQMRQOQYPZHFOGRIZ53F646KU Not ice_fusion.

      I’m waiting as well.

    • Andy UK

      The only people waiting is hard core MS geeks like us.  The average consumer has no idea what mango is or if they should care.   Using the “wait until mango release”  or the “until the better hardware comes out” is delusional to the issue MS is facing with the OS.  

      They have to address the reality that carriers are not supporting the OS by rebuilding relationships and that the public finds nothing compelling about the OS.  Even Mango bring the OS to competitive level but still fails to make it compelling.  i

    • RedStarDev

      Like someone said on another forum,  It is time to change Tile colors to brown to represent how CRAPPY sales are going for WP7 .

    • BlestrieB

      Good point AndyUK, our believed OS was released before it was ready and it has killed sales.   It said to see even HP loser Palm OS doing better then WP7.  

    • Guest

      Lol at all these trolls. Nothing compelling? Android has nothing compelling, just too many levels screens, redundant widgets.

      Store reps are sabotaging it, either way WP is the third ecosystem.

    • Guest

      Compelling as used in the marketing term meaning unique, features not available in competitive products.  It is not about the UI which like many here would agree about the WP7 UI is attractive but that is a judgment on taste.  A person can be pro-WP7 and still be intelligent enough to see it’s short coming as a product and/or how it is marketed.   Your comment has just prove your not one of those people. 

      And do not blame WP7 failure on salespeople, carriers or competition, blame MS and MS only for the not perform effective to make the product successful.  At the end of the day it is MS decision they make about the product that will determine if customer buy WP7 or not.   It is immature and ignorant to believe anything else.  

  • Anonymous

    I think what many don’t realize is that the smart phone market has been growing quickly so even a drop in share could actually mean an increase in sales.  WHile it still looks bad it may not be as bad as it seems.

    • http://www.winrumors.com Tom W

      Agreed. I think things will get a lot better with Mango and Mango devices.

    • http://twitter.com/PeterKremzar Peter Kremzar

      That’s exactly what I think about it.

    • Guest

      Why do I think this may bb S. Ballmer himself posting :)

  • Mbuzi

    MS takes forever to release stuff, they have been working on Mango since forever.

    • phil jay

      you mean like for about half a year?

    • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ahmad-AbdulLateef/100000511909755 Ahmad AbdulLateef

      @Mbuzi do u know what Mango is? If you had known you wouldnt say what you said!!!!

    • Steve

      The phone is less than a year old and Mango will be the second feature update and a major one. Hardly forever!

    • Steve

      The phone is less than a year old and Mango will be the second feature update and a major one. Hardly forever!

    • Sam

      I agree with you

  • NativeFloridian

    I would like to see Microsoft provide an OS for feature phones.  I really like the new Windows Phones, but was not interested in a data plan.  So, I ended up buying the KinOnem — the “m” means that it is a redesigned feature phone.  It shares many of the design philosophies with the Windows Phone.  If they could successfully market (I’m sure the Kin doesn’t count as successful) a similar feature phone OS, I think it would result in many converts to full-fledged Windows Phones users.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ahmad-AbdulLateef/100000511909755 Ahmad AbdulLateef

    @Mbuzi do u know what Mango is? If you had known you wouldnt say what you said!!!!

  • http://twitter.com/MossyBlog Scott Barnes

    I’m on record for saying MSFT would fail with consumers in the first release. I’m starting to think not even Mango can fix this. Enterprise and circle back to Consumer. It’s what i’d advise anyway.

    • Guest

      You used to work at MS, considering you didn’t understand the Silverlight/DirectUI/Jupiter situation with Windows 8 and you’re a .Net coder I think you’re pretty bad at predictions.

      Windows developers — don’t understand markets
      Mac users — don’t understand freedom
      Google users — don’t understand value, privacy, economics (more complicated than markets), business, design

    • Guest

      Sorry Scott. I’m sure you’ve predicated accurately before and maybe you’re right. Only time will tell. Strategy sounds fine.

  • TryllZ

    Good things come to those who wait..n if you cant wait, dont get one..

    I don’t care what the market says about M$ market share, I’m buying a WPM and nobody can change my mind on that..

    • http://twitter.com/sidoh11 sydney siamayuwa

      thats very true, mango come u find me wainting

  • GP007

    For a quicker turn around MS needs to try and have a steady flow of new WP devices every few months instead of once a year like we’re getting so far.   If nokia does what it says and has a new device(s) every 3 or so months then that’d be huge.   The more people see new phones keep coming out the more they think, hey, it must be doing well let’s check it out.

    • A Fan

      And with the bad new that Nokia is really sinking like a rock in all markets that even they may not help the OS. We may be  watching another KIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
      Ballmer needs fired, NOW.

  • Anonymous

    MS should make a commerical just about the Facebook messaging integration in Mango and the voice to text in Mango… they would win over TONS of people… Mango is fantastic… I would imagine that we are still going to see alot more from Mango too before it is released…

    Mango alone will change marketshare for WP… Nokia will just be a bonus… plus Mango runs great so far on older hardware too…

    • http://twitter.com/arnehelseth Arne Helseth

      Agreed. The chat integration, and especially the text2speech and dictation aspect of it is a killer feature. Was driving home the other day, streaming music thru Zune while chatting with the wife on Facebook – completely handsfree. This is the sort of thing average users will find amazing and make them commit to the ecosystem.

  • https://profiles.google.com/116073748054291541228/posts Techy8789

    I’m no WP fan, but if Microsoft keeps this up, I wonder if Windows 8 will flop, too.

  • Test1ngi23

    HAHAHA!

  • Renzo

    Microsoft has a lot of market share with Android.

    **** you, pay me.

  • ss

    Mango is cool but it’s home screen is the same as the current WP7 to the casual observer.
    Without some suped up hardware, Mango will be in for a rough ride too. People have to commit to 2 years with a phone and don’t make the decision lightly.

    • brammes

      I agree and they should start educating their sales reps. I went to a phone shop in Ghent, Belgium and the sales guy didn’t even know what Mango was .. although he got a WP phone from HTC to play with.

    • http://twitter.com/oslicek David Petrla

      Microsoft Czech product manager has said that sales reps make 70 % of a customer’s decision. Microsoft is aware of it and wants to educate sales personnel as much as possible this time. Let’s hope they’ll succeed.

  • Anonymous

    I just ordered my first Windows Phone yesterday. Woohoo!  I was going to wait for Mango and a handset with a front facing camera, but I had to jump the gun early.  Why?  I was an AT&T subscriber, rocking a crappy Samsung Captivate (Android) with an unlimited data plan.  If I were to renew with AT&T I would have had to switch to a tiered data plan… and for more money.  No thanks.  With Verizon switching to tiered data plans tomorrow, I had to get in on the unlimited data action now!  I figured, with all the money I’m going to save on the data plan (if I had to get a tiered plan), I can put that money towards a second WP7 when the new handsets come out. 

  • http://www.facebook.com/noe.brito Noe Brito

    I’m waiting on the Mango update too! Can’t wait to see some CONFIRMED new hardware!

    • Sam

      I am Waiting looks like wait is going to longer [ No Fall only X-max ]

  • Anonymous

    you will see the waiting lines in october ;) i will be there

    • Guest

      Actually you will not haw to wait until Oct, your new iPhone will be released in Sept.  

  • mr trick

    i got a wp7 phone within a month of release last year, , and love it, ,
    personally i cant really fault it,, although the new mango additions will be great..
    the problem as i see it is microsoft were just too late to the party,,now the iphone is so well established and ‘trendy’ its going to be very difficult to budge,,even blackberry’s are popular now with youngsters…
    i know of maybe only 1 other person who owns a wp7 device, where as i know hundreds that own iphones, blackberry’s or android phones!..
    the only way microsoft is ever gonna win this one is to drop the prices of the phones (and contracts)
    dramatically. . .
    its gonna take a long time to get enough people on board before they have a big apple sized market share..
    anyway, , i still love my phone,, and its nice to be a little different to everyone else :)

  • James_pullin

    I really like the look of and direction MS is going with WP7 but as a person looking for a new phone with AT&T (as with all carriers) there is just a lack of devices that catch my eye…mainly with internal AND removable storage capacity… regardless of how new the OS is.

  • James_pullin

    I really like the look of and direction MS is going with WP7 but as a person looking for a new phone with AT&T (as with all carriers) there is just a lack of devices that catch my eye…mainly with internal AND removable storage capacity… regardless of how new the OS is.

  • James_pullin

    I really like the look of and direction MS is going with WP7 but as a person looking for a new phone with AT&T (as with all carriers) there is just a lack of devices that catch my eye…mainly with internal AND removable storage capacity… regardless of how new the OS is.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Jesse-Garcia/100000361221634 Jesse Garcia

    How long did it take for the Xbox to beat out the ps2? im going to say its gonna take about the same time for the WP to beat or catch up to the competition. People are getting bored with the iphone and android phones, like most people i know. In time people, just chill. 

  • Anonymous

    I want an LTE Mango phone – release that and I’ll buy it.