Apple was in the unfamiliar position of receiving mostly negative speculation ahead of its March quarter earnings announcement, amid fears that the Apple brand was losing its lustre and that it was losing sales to cheaper Android alternatives, especially in developing smartphone markets.

In the end iPhone sales were in line with our expectations at 37.4 million units, while iPad sales were at the top end our expectations at 19.5 million units. Revenues were at the top end of Apple’s previous guidance at $43.6 billion, with revenues from Greater China at an all-time high, while gross margin was at the low end of guidance at 37.5%. This resulted in quarterly net profit of $9.5 billion, down from $11.6 billion in the year-ago quarter, the first year-on-year fall in quarterly profits by Apple for ten years, in spite of record March quarter revenues. Gross margin in the year-ago quarter was 47.4%, meaning margin has fallen by over 20% in the past year.

This margin decline points to a lower average selling price (ASP) for Apple devices. The ASP for the iPhone declined slightly year-on-year, with the lower-priced iPhone 4 contributing a higher proportion of the mix than has historically been the case thanks to being made more available in some developing markets. Furthermore, higher than expected sales of the iPad mini, following supply shortages in the previous quarter, will have been a major contributor to the margin decline by causing a lower iPad ASP.

In conclusion this was a solid quarter from Apple, with revenues beating expectations but profitability falling slightly short. iPhone shipments of 37.4 million units, at an ASP of $613 are in line with expectations, while the lower-priced iPad mini was probably the single most significant contributor to both the higher revenues and the lower profitability. Apple guided around $34.5 billion revenue and 36.5% gross margin for the June quarter, which will have done little to reassure investors concerned about Apple’s declining profitability.

Here I am discussing Apple earlier today as part of a Bloomberg TV roundtable:

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, smartphone sales volumes will surge +56% in Africa Middle East this year. The rate of growth in Africa is almost two times higher than the global average. Growth will be driven by first-time buyers and 2G handset upgraders in major countries such as Nigeria, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. More details can be viewed by clients in this published report, which forecasts worldwide smartphone sales for 88 countries globally, including Brazil, Spain, Russia and others.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, smartphone sales volumes will surge +69% in India this year. The rate of growth in India is two times higher than the global average. Growth will be driven by a wave of low-cost Android and Microsoft models for prepaid users from companies like Samsung, Micromax and Nokia. More details can be viewed by clients in this published report, which forecasts worldwide smartphone sales for 88 countries globally, including India, China, US and others.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global smartphone sales will grow by +33% in 2013. Asia Pacific will remain the largest region, accounting for half of global smartphone sales in 2013. The two largest countries by far in 2013 will be the USA and China. This published report, available to clients, forecasts global smartphone sales, for 88 countries worldwide, from 2007 to 2017. Almost every major country worldwide is covered, including United States, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. This report can be used by operators, software developers, content developers, handset vendors, component makers, car manufacturers and other stakeholders to determine the size and growth rate of the huge global smartphone market.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global smartphone shipments grew +38% annually in Q4 2012, and +43% in FY 2012. Growth in the quarter was healthy but slowed a little as postpaid penetration matures. Samsung and Apple continue to dominate volumes due to their extensive retail presence. Huawei became the world's third largest smartphone player for the first time ever, highlighting the rise of Chinese brands. This published report -- available to download by clients --contains global smartphone shipments by the top 20 vendors by region by quarter from 2007 to 2012. Global smartphone shipments by vendor by operating system by quarter are also included in a pivot-table. The report is valuable for mobile stakeholders who want to size the huge market for smartphones and operating system marketshare by hardware vendor.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global smartphone shipments reached a record level of 700 million units in full-year 2012. While Android was once more the dominant global OS by volume, Apple reclaimed some marketshare thanks to the first full quarter of availability for the new iPhone 5. This trend was especially apparent in North America, where Android appears to have peaked, but globally Android still accounts for a significant majority of all smartphones shipped. BlackBerry and Symbian continued to see their global presence shrink, and while Microsoft experienced a boost from the launch of Windows Phone 8 in Q4, the gain was smaller than expected.

This published report, available to download by clients, contains global smartphone shipments by operating system by region by quarter from 2009 to 2012. The report is valuable for mobile stakeholders who want to size the huge market for smartphones and operating system marketshare.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, HTC’s smartphone shipments worldwide declined by -29% annually in Q4 2012. We believe Chinese players such as Huawei, ZTE and Lenovo are grabbing large chunks of marketshare in China in the lower price-tiers, while the two smartphone giants Samsung and Apple achieved a lion’s share of volume and profit in the higher-tiers. As a result of the heightened competition, HTC’s global revenues were down -41% against the previous year and its gross profit fell by -92% annually. This published report gives more details for clients to download.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, smartphone shipments grew +25% annually in North America during the fourth quarter of 2012, the region's strongest growth rate for a year with both USA and Canada registering record high smartphone demand. Three out of Four mobile phones sold in North America now are smartphones.

However, Android lost eleven points of sequential share to Apple as it is approached a peak in the US market. Meanwhile, Microsoft overtook BlackBerry OS to become America's third largest platform for the first time since 2006. This report contains quarterly smartphone vendor and OS shipments and marketshare for the top 9 vendors and top 5 platforms in the United States and Canada for Q4 2012. The report also contains historical data for North America from 2007 to 2012, as well as a pivot table for data control and a deeper dive for an OEM-by-platform view in these countries

North America Smartphone Vendor & OS Market Share by Country: Q4 2012

Strategy Analytics is proud to be an official research partner of the GSMA Mobile World Congress (MWC) trade show.

The huge and influential MWC show takes place in Barcelona, Spain, between Monday 25th to Thursday 28th February, 2013.

Strategy Analytics will be sending multiple analysts and consultants to this year's MWC show in Barcelona. If you would like to brief our analysts in our mobile phone, smartphone and tablet services, or to arrange formal / informal meetings with us, please contact us through this dedicated link on our website. We look forward to the possibility of meeting you in sunny Barcelona.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, Microsoft Windows Phone overtook BlackBerry OS to become the third largest smartphone platform in the influential United States market during Q4 2012. It was the first time Microsoft has surpassed Blackberry since 2006. Meanwhile, Android lost share in annual terms in the US for the first time ever. Are we now at “peak Android”? More analysis can be downloaded by clients here.