IPhones account for 42% of smartphones owned in the US

Apple Inc.'s iPhone is owned by more than 40 percent of smartphone users in the U.S., giving the Cupertino, Calif., tech company a larger share of the national smartphone market than any of its rivals, according to a report Thursday.

Apple's U.S. iPhone ownership grew from 35 percent during the fourth quarter of 2012 to 42 percent during the same period in 2013, according to a study by NPD Group.

The study found that Samsung Electronics Co. came in second place, with 26 percent of smartphone users reporting they own a device by the South Korean tech giant - up from 22 percent during the fourth quarter of 2012.

Apple and Samsung combine to represent 68 percent of the smartphones owned in the U.S., placing the two companies well ahead of any competitors. While Apple and Samsung grew their ownerships, Google Inc.-owned Motorola, HTC Corp. and BlackBerry Ltd. saw their numbers drop.

According to NPD Group, HTC had the biggest drop, with ownership falling from 12 percent in 2012 to just 7 percent in 2013. That was followed by Motorola, which fell from 11 percent ownership in 2012 to 8 percent in 2013.

Only 5 percent of U.S. smartphone users reported owning a BlackBerry during the fourth quarter of 2012, but that number fell further in 2013, to 2 percent.

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