Google’s Android operating system is outshining its rivals in the smartphone market across Western Europe and the United States. According to new figures released by Kantar Worldpanel Comtech, Android’s market share reached 38 per cent in the quarter ended May this year.

The figure represents an increase of 15 per cent in Android’s market share from the February survey that showed Android’s market share at 33 per cent.

Rival operating system Apple iOS’ market share slipped from 30.6 per cent to 18.3 per cent in Britain, though it jumped from 21.1 per cent to 28.7 per cent in the United States.

Symbian operating system suffered a massive dip in its market share across Europe. In Britain, its share slipped from 32.7 per cent in June last year to 10.7 per cent in June this year. In the United Sates, Symbian' share dropped from 10.1 per cent to 0.2 per cent in the same period.

RIM also saw a decline in its market share. In the Unites States, it slipped from 32.5 per cent to 8.8 per cent, though its share jumped from 19.4 per cent to 22.3 per cent in Britain.

Android's growth has come as it commands much of the new smartphone sales. According to estimates, 74.3 per cent of new Android users formerly had a voice handset, compared with merely 1.4 per cent who earlier owned an iPhone.