Google's Android driving smartphone surge: Gartner

HELSINKI, FINLAND: Growing demand for smartphones running on Google's Android platform will help the smartphone market grow 58 percent this year and 35 percent next year, research firm Gartner said on Thursday.

Android, a distant No. 2 to Nokia's Symbian just last year, will increase its market share to 39 percent this year while Symbian's share will roughly halve to 19 percent following Nokia's decision to dump the platform.

Nokia decided in February to start using Microsoft's Windows Phone as its main smartphone platform, a move Gartner expected would boost Windows Phone market share to 11 percent next year and to 20 percent in 2015.

"This is not about giving Nokia too much credit, this is about saying that Nokia will do everything they can to stay in this business. Anything less than this would mean the end of Nokia," analyst Carolina Milanesi said.