Apple Snags 72% of Japan’s Smartphone Market

The popularity of Apple’s iPhone has grown in Japan so much that it now accounts for 72 percent of the country’s smartphone market, according to BusinessWeek.

iPhone shipments to Japan have more than doubled in the past year, and shipments are expected to top three million units over the next 12 months, too. The iPhone’s growth in the country stands in contrast to the overall decline Japan’s smartphone market has seem over the past two years.

Smartphone competition is expected to heat up in Japan this year, which means Apple may have to work harder to keep its lead. “Last year was just the beginning of the smartphone competition, which is why Apple did so well,” said Daiwa Securities Group analyst Calvin Huang.

HTC followed Apple with 11 percent of the country’s smartphone market sales, followed buy Toshiba with 6.8 percent of the market.