Research firm IDC loves numbers, especially when it comes to smartphone marketshare and shipments. Today we've got some numbers from the IDC that paint a forecast for the future of Windows Phone. Growth is in the cards for Windows Phone, while the future of BlackBerry is dicey.
The IDC expects BlackBerry's worldwide market share to dip to 0.8 percent in 2014 and could fall further to 0.3 percent by 2018. Android will continue to dominate this year with 80.2 percent of the global market, but will dip slightly to 77.6 percent in 2018. Apple will be at 14.8 percent this year, while dropping to 13.7 percent of the market in 2018.
The winner? Windows Phone.
The research at IDC expects Windows Phone to jump to 6.4 percent in 2018, up from 3.5 percent.
Of course, take all of this with a grain of salt. In September 2010, shortly before the launch of Windows Phone 7, the IDC gave a report that 'Windows Mobile' would have 9.8 percent market share in 2014. A little to the left there.
