With the close of the first quarter reporting season, it's time to see who's on top and who's not. Strategy Analytics research shows Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) remains the nation's largest wireless carrier with 104 million connections, but AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) is nipping at the operator's heels with 97.5 million connections at the close of the first quarter. Meanwhile, Clearwire (NASDAQ:CLWR) continues to climb the rankings ladder, surpassing U.S. Cellular during the first quarter with a total of 6.1 million subscribers. On the handset side, ABI Research shows Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) as the world's fourth-largest branded handset maker with 18.7 million unit shipments in the first quarter--putting the iPhone vendor within spitting distance of No. 3 vendor LG. And in IHS iSuppli's rankings of smartphone vendors, Apple is the world's second largest, just behind market leader Nokia (NYSE:NOK). Check out our complete wrap-up of the wireless industry's position at the close of the first quarter through our comprehensive carrier, handset and smartphone vendor rankings:
- Top 10 U.S. wireless carriers
- Top 10 global branded handset makers
- Top 10 global branded smartphone makers
And for further analysis, check out our special report on the first quarter earnings of all the industry's major players.