Samsung grabs 95 percent of Android smartphone profits
The Korean handset maker earned $5.1 billion of the $5.3 billion in global profits last quarter, says research firm Strategy Analytics.
Samsung took home almost all of the profits generated in the Android smartphone world last quarter, according to a report today from Strategy Analytics.
For the first quarter, global Android smartphone profits totaled $5.3 billion. Samsung captured a hefty 95 percent, or $5.1 billion, of that amount. Strategy Analytics senior analyst Woody Oh pinned Samsung's success on an "efficient supply chain, sleek products, and crisp marketing."
Second place LG Electronics snagged 2.5 percent of Android's global earnings and is far behind Samsung in the volume of its smartphone devices. Samsung could even use its dominance to gain an edge over LG and other rival Android vendors.
"We believe Samsung generates more revenue and profit from the Android platform than Google does," Strategy Analytics Executive Director Neil Mawston said in a statement. "Samsung has strong market power, and it may use this position to influence the future direction of the Android ecosystem. For example, Samsung could request first or exclusive updates of new software from Android before rival hardware vendors."
Looking at the entire smartphone industry last quarter, the Android platform carved out a 43 percent slice of $12.5 billion in operating profits, according to the report.