Apple now owns 66% of mobile profits

By Rene Ritchie
last updated

Horace Dediu of Asymco has taken a look at the financial results of Apple, Nokia, Samsung, LG, Sony-Ericsson, Motorola, HTC, and RIM and put together a comparison of who is making profit and how much. Apple, perhaps not surprisingly, has gone from almost 0 in 2007 to 66% in the latest quarter, 2011.

Three companies which captured 11% of the profits before the modern smartphone era started (four years ago!) now capture 84% of the profits. Only one global brand phone vendor selling non-smart voice-oriented feature phones is still profitable however, as we shall see later, the only reason profits still exist for any vendor is due to the strength of their smartphone portfolio.

Why do we care if Apple is making money and other manufacturers aren't? Even if you're not a shareholder, it means Apple is increasing their resources and has

The pie chart above tells the story, and for more details and graphics, hit the link below.

[Asymco]

Rene Ritchie
Rene Ritchie
Contributor

Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.

13 Comments
  • HTC Sam and rim didn't do too bad either...
  • ok - great. Now where is the new Phone ...
  • Friggin eecnllext,Extreme to the hilt with this one Doug,Never thought you would risk your main device,oh wait it was a 3gs,cool even better and the phone still work's,Wait . you going to shoot it as well,ha ha awesome,I used one of those age's ago on my 3gs,Think i need to get me another for my iPhone 4,Thank's for a great video Doug
  • Since when does Operating Share = Operating PROFIT Share???????
  • When I first sratted hearing about ipads being used in elementary schools I was a little shocked. After reading this, maybe I'm just jealous that these kids get to play with ipads and I don't.It's similar to cell phones, minus the education; I didn't have a cell phone until my senior year in high school, but now kids have it in 4th grade. I get that it's a lifeline, and even though the generations before us did fine without them, doesn't mean we can't enjoy our technology at a younger age. So while I really dislike seeing young kids with cellphones, again, maybe I'm just jealous that I didn't have one at that age.Apple products are known for what? Innovation, and user interface. It's no mystery that it's so simple a very young boy or girl can use it. Think of how much smarter and adapted to the surrounding world the next generations will be at an earlier age. Basically, that means greater human accomplishments, more often.How can anyone be against that?As far as Apple creating life-long customers you can't really say they aren't. If Apple continues being who they are, then it'll be great to see where they stand in the global marketplace in 20-50 years. So good for them!
  • Asus transformer is one of the best competitors, of many, to the ipad.
    Android caught up quick with tablets in comparison to the time they took to get smartphones going.
  • I have played with the BB playbook, and the android tablets on the market. With android I had difficulty knowing how to exit some screens. Overall it looked good but just lacks polish.
    The apple ecosystem from a IOS across phones and IPad, app store, etc. These competitors get wiped off the map. I stood there and was like. I can't get the apps on this device I could have immediately on the IPad. There just was no comoarison
  • Apples iPhones are the most favorite in today's young generation. And the result is also showing the same. According to the pictorial representation we can say that Apple becomes zero to hero.
  • Awesome site you have here but I was cuuiors if you knew of any community forums that cover the same topics talked about in this article? I'd really love to be a part of community where I can get comments from other experienced people that share the same interest. If you have any suggestions, please let me know. Many thanks!
  • well hniavg seen both side by side i would get the white one but the black one means that i don't have to take the chance of that white bezel getting dirty either wayif u use a case get the one you think will look the best in it
  • if u want a free iTunes gfrtcaid for 15 dollars get this app called shopkick then goto me where it says me at the bottom of the screen then it says promo code tap that and type pigeon8415 that will get u 50 points
  • Heya i am for the first time here. I found this board and I find It really useful & it helped me out
    much. I hope to give something back and aid
    others like you helped me.
    My site; I recommend them for sure
  • Nice post. I learn something totally new and challenging on blogs I stumbleupon everyday.
    It will always be exciting to read content from
    other authors and practice a little something from other
    sites.
    my homepage; Aruba