Samsung is gaining smartphone market share at the expense of Nokia and Apple. Yes, Apple. The numbers come from a report by Strategy Analytics showing results for the second quarter of 2011 by shipments. The bottom line: Samsung exceeded Nokia to take second place in market share with 19.6 million units shipped. The Finnish producer sent out 16.7 million smartphones while the leader, Apple, shipped 20.3 million iPhones. Neil Mawston, an analyst at Strategy Analytics, found some good reasons for Samsung's growth:

Samsung's impressive smartphone growth has been driven by its attractive hardware designs, advanced features, a compelling Android ecosystem and an extensive global distribution network.

If analyst predictions turn out to be true, Samsung could reach 20-30 million smartphone shipments worldwide in the third quarter, making it new worldwide leader in the smartphone market. The company's close relationship with Google is a primary reason for its growth, says the executive vice president of global product strategy, Won-Pyo Hong. The release of Galaxy Nexus takes the relationship even further. He denied speculation that Galaxy Nexus was made to feint patents. Samsung is one of the major Android smartphone manufacturers, even if it has its own Bada OS and sells Windows Phone devices. Its Galaxy suit of Android smartphones has sold 30 million units worldwide. The Galaxy S II sold 10 million units in just five months.