Google’s Android Makes Market Share Strides in Third Quarter

Google enjoyed a strong quarter for its Android mobile operating system during the third quarter of the calendar year, growing its share of U.S. smartphone subscribers by 6.5 percentage points versus Q2 to account for a total of 21.4 percent, according to data from comScore.

Meanwhile, Apple – Google’s major rival in the mobile platform space – failed to grow its share of subscribers over the same period, accounting for an average of 24.3 percent of subscribers across both quarters.

If Android continues to grow at the rate comScore estimates it did in the three months ending September, it’s on track to outgrow iPhone’s market share by the end of this year, crowning it the second largest smartphone platform in the U.S. behind BlackBerry manufacturer RIM.

It’s important to note, however, that the comScore data accounts only for iPhone subscribers and does not include devices such as the iPod Touch. From an advertiser perspective, therefore, Apple’s connected devices likely still provide far greater reach than Android ones.

Microsoft, meanwhile, saw the portion of U.S. smartphone subscribers using its platform drop to 10 percent. Following the launch of Microsoft Windows 7 Mobile this month, however, that portion will likely begin to climb, perhaps at the expense of market leaders RIM, Apple, and Google.