One in Three Adults in UK Use Smartphone Technology

The number of mobile internet users in the UK currently stands at approximately 16 million, and is expected to double to over 18 million by 2015. Globally, smartphone ownership is predicted to reach 2 billion over the next 4 years. Such data provides the general context for the revelation that in the UK, 1 in 3 adults now use a smartphone.

The study was compiled by IT research company IDC.

Mobile internet penetration in the UK is expected to hit almost 40% by 2015 according to eMarketer; currently the figure is approximately 27%. With the rapid growth of smartphone ownership, and the predicted continuation of this for the foreseeable future, it is no wonder so much focus has been placed on the development of m-commerce and mobile phone application production.

Regarding the latter, it is thought that the number of mobile app downloads will reach 48 billion by 2015. While iPhones account for some 65% of UK application users, Android is lagging behind with a 31% share of the market. Other Operating Systems such as Blackberry and Symbian share a paltry 3% of the market.

The analysis was performed by industry experts GSMA, and was published as part of their Mobile Media Metrics Report in association with comScore.

Despite the higher percentage of iPhone app downloads, the overall British smartphone market appears to lean towards the Android OS rather than the iPhone, with 28% owning a device powered by Google Android software compared with the 26% using the Apple systems.

The discrepancy between the overall distribution of Android and iPhone devices and the download figures pose another question mark over the Android App Market, which has been plagued by various setbacks, not least the perceived lack of security in comparison to the more established iPhone app store.

Whatever way the mobile app landscape is mapped out, it remains that the increased uptake of smartphone technology is a driving force in today’s mobile and wider digital sphere. The logical conclusion of course is that smartphones will soon eclipse the feature phone market. A prediction reinforced by the fact that almost half of mobile phones sold in Western Europe in the 1st quarter of 2011 were of the smart variety.