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Android's share of the Chinese smartphone market ended the third quarter at 90 percent. According to Analysys International, Android's share is up from 83 percent a quarter prior and 58 percent a year ago.
With the Chinese market now accounting for a quarter of global smartphone shipments, Android's dominance there is driving its widening lead in global smartphone platform market share.
In China, Android's gain has mostly come at the expense of Symbian, Nokia's antiquated platform that will eventually disappear as Nokia shifts its product offerings on to Windows Phone.
Interestingly, despite its dominance, Google only offers limited support for Google Play in China and Android apps are usually downloaded in third-party app markets.
Apple, meanwhile, has never really gained traction after a weak market entry on only one of the country's major providers. The iPhone 5 will be available on two carriers, but as of now will not be distributed by the largest carrier, China Mobile. Additionally, while many Chinese consumers may fawn over iPhones, they are simply out of reach financially for a substantial part of the market.
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