If you want to win the mobile platform game, prepare for all out war. Android and iOS are very much at the top of the pile right now, but they weren’t always. Chances are they won’t stay on top forever either.
There will be casualties too. Just ask the people who helped develop BlackBerry OS, Symbian, or even Web OS. All of them had their time in the sun and all of them know just how quickly a platform can fall from favour.
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In fact, this infographic from mobile research company Vision Mobile suggests that some 30 mobile platforms have risen up before dying because they failed to reach critical mass. Some of these still have a whisper of life left in them and are referred to as Zombie platforms. That begs the question, what do you call a platform that seems dead and then comes back to life? A Lazurus platform?
Whichever platform dominates in the future, living or zombie, chances are it’ll have its eyes set on Africa. The continent has only has a smartphone penetration rate of 18%, meaning there’s massive potential for growth.
