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Comscore in a recent research paper on the iPhone Trends provides some
interesting insights on how the iPhone has become the no 1 consumer electronic
item that is universally searched across the internet for the third year
in succession. In July 2009, a month after the iPhone 3GS was launched, 6.6
million U.S. mobile users reported having an iPhone. Over the next two
years, during which the iPhone 4 was released on both AT&T’s and
Verizon’s networks, that number increased to 22.2 million mobile users – a
staggering 235 percent increase
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A look at the volume of iPhone searches
over the past six months leading up to the rumored release date (Figure 1)
shows interest in the iPhone 5 steadily building from 2.3 million searches in
March to 6.7 million in August.
The most popular iPhone 5-related search terms in August
were “iPhone 5,” “iPhone 5 release date,” and “iPhone 5 rumors.” Of the nearly
40 million total searches related to the iPhone in August, iPhone 5-related
searches accounted for 17 percent, gaining ground on iPhone 4-related searches
at 23 percent. iPhone 3GS searches accounted for 5 percent of all iPhone
searches, while the remaining 55 percent were not specific to a particular
model.
In July 2011, a significant percentage – more than 45
percent – of iPhone users in the U.S. continued to come from households earning
$100,000 or more. However, the number of iPhone users with a household income
of less than $50,000 doubled vs. last year, accounting for the highest growth
rate across income segments. This growth coincides with AT&T’s heavily
discounted offering of the iPhone 3GS at the beginning of 2011, priced at only
$49
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