According to recent market surveys, Apple has become the top-selling phone manufacturer in Japan. The iPhone was the best-selling phone in Japan in 2012, allowing Apple to capture 15% market share. This puts them just ahead of Sharp and Fujitsu, both Japanese firms and both holding 14% of the market. Counterpoint Technology Market Research believes that the increase in iPhone sales was due to heavier marketing by KDDI and Softbank, Japan’s second- and third-largest carriers, respectively: