Skip to main content

Samsung and Apple Dominate Smartphone Growth

The worldwide mobile phone market grew 1.9 percent year over year in the fourth quarter of 2012 (4Q12), as strong holiday smartphone sales raised shipments of these devices to levels nearly equal to those of feature phones.

According to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC), vendors shipped a total of 482.5 million mobile phones in 4Q12 compared to 473.4 million units in the fourth quarter of 2011. For the full year, the global market for mobile phones grew 1.2 percent on shipments of more than 1.7 billion units.

In the worldwide smartphone market, vendors shipped 219.4 million units in 4Q12, which represents 45.5 percent of all mobile phone shipments, the highest percentage ever.

The 36.4 percent year-over-year growth was slightly below IDC's forecast of 39.5 percent for the quarter. On an annual basis, 712.6 million smartphones were shipped globally in 2012, which was 44.1 percent more than in 2011.

"The high-growth smartphone market, though dominated by Samsung and Apple, still presents ample opportunities for challengers," said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst at IDC.


Vendors with unique market advantages, such as lower-cost devices, can rapidly gain market share, especially in emerging markets.

Samsung set a new record for the number of smartphones shipped in a single quarter and in a single year. Its broad and deep line-up of Android smartphones, particularly the Galaxy-branded Android family, combined with sustained demand for its mid-range and entry-level models to account for the remarkable shipment volumes.

2013 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for Samsung as its Tizen smartphone strategy takes shape. Samsung will continue to rely on Android as its primary operating system, however, as the move to Tizen will not likely take place overnight.

Apple's record iPhone shipments in the quarter were driven by successes in Greater China, where shipments more than doubled, as well as the U.S., where 6.2 million iPhones were activated on Verizon alone.

Interestingly, the company's success was due in large part to older models, in particular the iPhone 4, which Apple couldn't make enough of in the quarter relative to demand. Its sales success with the older model could portend success in higher-growth emerging markets where the company has performed well.

Popular posts from this blog

Bold Broadband Policy: Yes We Can, America

Try to imagine this scenario, that General Motors and Ford were given exclusive franchises to build America's interstate highway system, and also all the highways that connect local communities. Now imagine that, based upon a financial crisis, these troubled companies decided to convert all "their" local arteries into toll-roads -- they then use incremental toll fees to severely limit all travel to and from small businesses. Why? This handicapping process reduced the need to invest in building better new roads, or repairing the dilapidated ones. But, wouldn't that short-sighted decision have a detrimental impact on the overall national economy? It's a moot point -- pure fantasy -- you say. The U.S. political leadership would never knowingly risk the nation's social and economic future on the financial viability of a restrictive duopoly. Or, would they? The 21st century Global Networked Economy travels across essential broadband infrastructure. The forced intro...