Symbian is still the top smartphone operating system in the Middle-East, according to traffic analysis by the mobile advertising agency, InMobi.

However, combined growth of Android/iOS claiming 54% share of available impressions continues to threaten Symbian's lead. The top handsets in Q1 2012 are Apple devices, which now make up a 12% share of total handset impressions.

Richard O'Sullivan, Head of Sales, Middle East at InMobi comments: "This is our first report in the Middle East, and we are very excited at being able to share some of our key findings from our Mobile Insight Report. We now serve over 11.5 billion impressions per quarter in the Middle East, which shows that the reach mobile devices offer local, regional and global brands is continuing to grow."

Top 3 OS Systems: % Share Available Impressions

O'Sullivan concludes: "Mobile ad growth has been driven by smartphones, and we have seen a 50% increase since Q4 2011. Smartphone impressions now outnumber advanced phone impressions by more than 4 to 1, and we expect to see more diversity in the numbers over the coming months as we add Middle East premium publishers and networks. Further, in-app advertising has shown incredible growth, a staggering 100 per cent increase. This illustrates a strong ecosystem build up for apps in the Middle East."

Top 3 Handsets: % Share of Impressions