Kantar has released its latest monthly report on the smartphone market, this time covering the 3 month period ending in December 2016. As you'd expect, things continue to look down for Windows Phone, which continues to hold onto a small sliver of the market share pie compared to its rivals.
Overall, Windows Phone is down almost across the board compared to the same period in 2015. Across the 5 EU countries in the report (Germany, Great Britain, France, Italy, and Spain), Windows Phone's share dropped to 2.6%, down from 7.6% in 2015. Windows Phone holds a similarly low spot in the U.S. with 0.8% of the market, which is down from 0.8%. China and Japan are both similarly down below 1%, while Australia came in at 1.9%, down by 4.4% compared to the same period last year.
Does Windows 10 Mobile have a future?
Given those negligible numbers, along with the steady decline of Windows Phone over in recent years, it's unlikely we'll see a major resurgence for the platform. That's particularly driven home when one considers Microsoft's winding down of its Lumia production and the continued dominance of Android and iOS in the mobile space. Still, some phone makers continue to soldier on with the likes of the Windows 10 Mobile-powered HP Elite x3 and Alcatel Idol 4s offering compelling options for fans of the platform in lieu of Microsoft's first party offerings.
For the more, be sure to check out Kantar's full report.
