"How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant -- Traditional corporate wisdom tells companies to fight it out between themselves to win greater market share. A brave new strategic direction is changing this. Instead of battling in the bloodied red waters of the existing market space, why not move to the pristine blue waters of previously untapped markets? Don't compete with rivals - make them irrelevant. INSEAD Professors W. Chan Kim and Ren�e Mauborgne outline an exciting new strategy framework, opening a fresh and vibrant way to earn strong profitable growth and win in the future."
The global smartphone market closed 2025 with a story less about recovery and more about transformation. Premium product, ecosystem lock-in, and manufacturing scale are now the forces shaping competition. For business and technology leaders, the latest IDC market study data confirms that smartphones remain a critical indicator of consumer demand, supply chain health, and AI commercialization at the edge. Smartphone Market Development Global smartphone shipments grew 2.3 percent year-over-year in Q4 2025, reaching 336.3 million units and bringing full-year volumes to 1.26 billion units — a modest 1.9 percent annual increase, according to IDC. This smartphone growth emerged despite a memory shortage crisis, tariff volatility, supply chain disruption, and macroeconomic headwinds. What stabilized demand? Two factors: sustained growth in premium devices and strong foldable momentum, combined with accelerated purchases as consumers bought ahead of anticipated price increases. Buyers weren...