Apple doesn't care that nearly 26% of its users switch to different platforms between quarters because it is focusing on encouraging users to buy all of the products in its broader functional ecosystem, experts say. They add that users are likely switching over to Android phones to save money. During the Epic Games vs. Apple trial, internal documents showed evidence of "meaningful switching" of smartphone users quarter-over-quarter. The highest percentage of users switching was between Q1 2020 and Q2 2020, which saw 26% of users switch from iOS to Android. This timeframe is particularly interesting as it marks the period that typically follows the announcement and release of new iPhones. VPN Deals: Lifetime license for $16, monthly plans at $1 & more
Nugget of data on iPhone customers switching platforms came out in the Epic v. Apple trial.
Apple submitted this to show people do switch (even if small) and therefore choice does exist.
Average iOS loyalty over this time period was 81%.
cc @benedictevans @asymco pic.twitter.com/koBSk7bvpK — Ben Bajarin (@BenBajarin) May 10, 2021 Epic Games said during the trial that Apple's App Store is anti-competitive and monopolistic, and doesn't allow developers to earn fairly. Apple said during the trial that "Epic wants us to be Android, but we don't want to be," and indicated that there needs to be a single highly curated App Store in order to protect users' privacy, security, and reliability. Ben Bajarin, CEO and principal analyst at Creative Strategies in California, said in an interview that a lot of people thought the number of users switching away from Apple was a lot smaller, and that more people were switching away from Android. "The point (Apple) was trying to make, and questionable as to whether it's a valid point, is that people do switch. They're certainly not switching 40% of the time, but they use that stat and say look 20% or somewhere north of that some, on a quarterly basis, do leave iOS to go to an Android," he said. "Their point is that switching does happen, but again it goes both ways; there's growth to their platform. People do switch from Android to iOS, but in general, it's not a large number." Would having iMessage on Android make a difference?
During the same trial between Epic Games and Apple, it was revealed that Apple was in favor of bringing iMessage to Android as early as 2013. The company wasn't convinced that this would be the right move and said it would "take more than a marginally better app" to get users to switch to iMessage from the best Android Messaging apps such as WhatsApp. Apple said that iMessage on Android "would simply serve to remove an obstacle to iPhone families giving their kids Android phones." Bajarin indicated that perhaps if Android phones had services like iMessage, the percentage of switching over might be higher, but it really isn't a factor for why users are switching now. "My gut would say, maybe that number would be a little bit higher for someone who is just willing to try something different. But most of those people came back to iPhones for other reasons. I don't think iMessage alone is essentially a deal-breaker," he said. "Users just wanted to try something different. They tried it, vetted it, and was like I still prefer iOS." So why do users switch from iOS to Android?
Neil Shah, vice-president of research at Counterpoint Research, said in an interview that one reason many users switch is because they find better deals for other phones. "Many iPhone users have been holding on to their phones longer, so by the time when they are ready to upgrade (they see that), the price of flagship new iPhones have gotten more expensive. So many users who can't afford and find an attractive carrier or OEM deal are likely to switch," he said, adding that a brand new OnePlus flagship is almost a third of the price of an iPhone flagship. In China, users spend the most time in one or two apps such as WeChat, so it doesn't matter to them if they are on an iOS or Android. Shah also explained that many iPhone users have hand-me-downs or refurbished phones, in which case the phone's user experience isn't optimum, "so when they are due for an upgrade, they are also likely to shift out of the iOS ecosystem unless they are locked in." "There's also a case where some Android users might have moved to an iPhone but couldn't get used to the UI or felt claustrophobic coming from an open system like Android, so they switch back or out of an iPhone," he said. And in some cases, the user is focused on what apps they are using most and don't necessarily care about the type of phone they're using, Shah added. When you buy a phone, you're buying a lifestyle and Apple has created that ecosystem
MrBadBadly on June 3rd, 2021 at 13:50 UTC »
TLDR: Apple sees their advantage and sales effort as being a way of selling a lifestyle through both products and services and feels that their product integration is a major advantage over google. People leave to try something different, and some return. The pitch to consumers isn't just the iPhone, but the entire system and lifestyle. They see themselves unrivaled, citing the failed WearOS/Android Wear as being a failed effort to rival Apple's own watchOS ecosystem and it's ability to tie into the rest of the Apple ecosystem.
HooBoy401 on June 3rd, 2021 at 13:32 UTC »
Big companies should sue each other more often IMO, the deets that have come out of this trial have been fascinating.
MorfiusX on June 3rd, 2021 at 12:50 UTC »
So we are talking about customer retention and is a pretty standard metric. However, without a comparison to similar products, this article is meaningless.