  While Apple’s iPhone 4S has successfully made inroads into United States and Britain, it is lagging behind in the rest of Europe, according to a research firm Kantar Worldpanel ComTech.
The research says that Apple's market share in the 12 weeks to end-November rose to 36 per cent in the United States from 25 per cent a year earlier and in Britain to 31 per cent from 21 per cent, Kantar said.
The countries where apple’s market share has gone down most are France, Germany, Spain and Italy. The fall is most pronounced in France where its market share has shrunk to 20 per cent from 29 per while in Germany it slipped to 22 per cent from 27 per cent.
The date released on Thursday by Kantar Worldpanel ComTech suggestthat Google with its free Android platform is leading the pack in smartphone market.
"In Great Britain, the US and Australia, Apple's new iPhone continues to fly off the shelf in the run-up to Christmas. However, this trend is far from universal," said Dominic Sunnebo, global consumer insight director.
"The French market is showing increasing signs of price sensitivity," Sunnebo said.
In part, the European sales of the expensive Apple model were hit by weakening economies across the continent.
Google had market shares of between 46 and 61 per cent in all markets. Cellphone makers like Samsung Electronics, Sony Ericsson, LG Ericsson and Motorola Mobility all use its Android platform in their phones.
"In Germany, Android achieved a dominant 61 per cent share of smartphone sales in the latest 12 weeks, with the Samsung Galaxy S II the top selling handset," Sunnebo said.
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