Nonetheless only two companies having more than 90% of the smartphone market, at least software-wise, can’t be good for consumers. No way it can be good.
There used to be many smartphone platforms.
But Apple and Google made such attractive products that consumers chose them instead of Blackberry, Palm, Windows Phone, Symbian, etc. That's how the market works.
I hear what you're saying... but Apple and Google didn't ask to become 90% of the smartphone market. They got there by everyone else dropping out.
We always say competition is good. Well... that's exactly what happened in the platform wars. There were many players competing... and most couldn't survive. So that's why there are just two platforms today. That's how it works.
Software-wise... would a developer want to support 3 or 4 platforms? Could they support that many platforms? That was the big problem with Windows Phone... no apps. Developers were so busy making iPhone and Android apps... that they couldn't spend time making Windows Phone apps.
People didn't buy Windows Phones because it didn't have the apps... and developers didn't make apps because people didn't buy Windows Phones. It was quite a dilemma.
I remember the computer market in the 80's and 90's. IBM compatible, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Amiga, Apple II, and so on.
And now it's just Windows and Mac.
Sometimes that's just how it works.