While Apple continues to enthral, a California-based mobile analytics firm has claimed that BlackBerry smartphones are the top devices used for browsing the internet in the Middle East, beating the Apple iPhone as well as popular Nokia models.
Motally's latest research, which involves tracking the top devices used in each region, found that most people across the Middle East (ma ye7tay egoloon lool ) browse the internet using the BlackBerry 8520 (18%) handset. The iPhone came in second with 10%, but BlackBerry took the third and fourth rankings again with their 8900 (8%) and 9000 (6%) models. The Nokia E71 represented only 5%.
It's one of the few regions in the world where BlackBerry has an advantage over the iPhone, which was ranked as the top device in North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania in the same report.
The figures are based on website traffic data that's collected using Motally's patent-pending technology, with the firm clarifying that the monthly report looked at the handsets that generated the most pageviews. While their research is only indicative of top handsets that are used to browse mobile websites, it does throw some light on preferred smartphone brands and models in the Middle East.
RIM CEO Jim Balsillie recently said that strong demand from the Gulf region contributed to a record number of the firm's smartphones being shipped during that quarter, with the launch of the 8520 helping to fuel growth.
"Not surprisingly, Apple and RIM top the list and are responsible for over 60% of traffic in five of seven regions. Interestingly, Blackberry has a regional advantage over Apple and is the top manufacturer in four of seven regions, and is in second place in two of seven regions," read a Motally blog post on the report. "We attribute this number one ranking over Apple primarily to a larger selection of Blackberry devices."
While the iPhone dominates in more developed markets, RIM's BlackBerry 8520 comes out on top in both the Middle East and South America and the BlackBerry 8900 trumps in Africa.
No comments:
Post a Comment