Another Way of Slicing the Android, iOS, RIM Horserace: Facebook Monthly Actives
For mobile developers, there are more than plenty of statistics abound to gauge relative market size for different smartphone platforms.
Google’s Android chief Andy Rubin said last month that the OS is seeing more than 300,000 activations a day while Apple said in its most recent earnings call that the company has cumulatively sold 160 million iOS devices. Nielsen said today that Android, iOS and RIM are in a three-way tie among smartphone owners in the U.S.
However, a more relevant number to gauge potential market size for mobile app developers may be the number of Facebook users worldwide on each platform. Facebook is likely a decent proxy for smartphone users willing to download and engage with applications (outside of markets like Japan, China and South Korea where the company has a weak presence). Unlike the statistics that Apple has released, it also takes out users who may have more than one iOS device.
