I recently posited that Apple was going to the Dark Side (Microsoft) because Jobs & Co. have finally decided to take the Android threat seriously. Over the weekend we received more news that supports this theory. Mashable reports:
It’s almost inevitable that AT&T will lose its iPhone exclusivity sooner or later. According to Hot Hardware, that milestone could come as early as next Wednesday at Apple’s special event. It makes sense for Apple: analysts say iPhone sales could as much as double as a result of pursuing broader carrier distribution.
This potential boost for iPhone sales would also help it hold off the Android threat, which, according to recent research has seen its market share explode 200% over the last three months of 2009:
iPhone swapping Google Search for Bing and losing AT&T exclusivity are both just rumors for now. However, where there’s smoke there’s fire and it sounds like Apple is reacting to its first real challenger to the iPhone by actively looking for any and every way possible to maintain its first position in the smart phone marketplace – one of the only industries it maintains such a lofty market share.