IDC found the iPad had 83 percent of the tablet market in 2010. Apple’s share was down to 73 percent in the fall due to the Galaxy Tab carving out 17 percent during its initial run.
IDC believed that Samsung may have sabotaged gaining larger market share due to a “lack of competitive pricing.” Samsung regularly charged just $30 less for its smaller, Galaxy Tab in the US versus a 3G iPad and force customers to buy a data plan, hiking its real cost.
Analysts also expected Apple to hold on to virtually all of that share in 2011. Despite other predictions of a decline, the iPad should still have 70 to 80 percent of the market this year.
Only a few companies could both compete on technology and price with Apple per IDC. One of those is Motorola.
The Motorola Xoom was one of these, but the decision to ship through Verizon first with an $800 price was a “barrier” that could lock it out of getting meaningful share. Motorola has promised an eventual Wi-Fi Xoom and may sell it for much less in early April.
Almost all tablet sales at the end of 2010, 89 percent, were in the iPad-friendly US, Western Europe and non-Japanese parts of the Asia-Pacific region.
