Charlie Wolf: Verizon iPhone Will ‘Suck the Wind Out of Android’s Growth’

John Paczkowski:

“The installed base of smartphone subscribers is a small percentage of the installed based of mobile phone subscribers in the U.S.,” Needham and Co. analyst Charlie Wolf told me. “Just 23 percent of Verizon’s 83 million post-paid subs (Q3 release)…. Where the iPhone will have a dramatic impact is on the brand choices of feature phone users migrating to smartphones going forward. The iPhone will suck the wind out of Android’s growth on Verizon.”

One thing I’ve been thinking about in this regard is that no matter how cheap Android handsets get, the monthly plans are still the biggest cost. And check out this screenshot from Verizon Wireless’s home page — they list three categories of phones: iPhone, Smartphones, Feature Phones. That says it all.

★ Friday, 14 January 2011