• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, March 16, 2011

Apple just seems to have a knack for making money. A new study from U.K.-based research firm Strategy Analytics shows that the company led the way in smartphone revenue in 2010, even though the iPhone accounted for only 16% of the global market. But from that base, it collected 29% of the $99 billion in overall smartphone revenues -- the biggest share of any phone manufacturer.

Smartphone market leader Nokia followed Apple with a 20% share, and BlackBerry-maker Research in Motion had 15%. The proliferation of Google's Android platform propelled Samsung to rank fourth in revenue share, with 9%. That pushed Samsung past Taiwan-based handset maker HTC.

Apple shipped some 46 million iPhones in 2010, with the unsubsidized price of up to $600 for the iPhone 4. Because of the performance of its products and the cachet of its brand, Apple has generally been able to charge premium prices for its range of phones, media players and personal computers. Combine that pricing with volume and you get big revenues.

Smartphones as a whole generate a much larger share of revenue than their penetration among mobile users would suggest. Smartphones made up just over 22% of the handset market, but accounted for more than half of total mobile revenue. "Unlike feature phones, smartphone average sales prices have held steady in the $300 range during 2010, bolstered by the introduction of new technology," noted Tom Kang, director of wireless smartphone strategies at Strategy Analytics.

Despite Apple claiming the lion's share of revenue, the research firm pointed out that Android's growth will not only continue to bolster Samsung and HTC but Chinese vendors like ZTE and Huawei as well. Another interesting development to watch in the next couple of years will be whether Nokia's alliance with Microsoft will help the Finnish phone giant boost smartphone sales by using Windows Phone 7 as the main operating system for its devices.