Skip to main content

Mobile Internet Growth is Enabled by Chinese Vendors

The evolution of the mobile communication ecosystem continues to advance in 2015, as the enabling smartphone vendor focus moves beyond what they make (products) towards "what they make possible" (socioeconomic freedom) within the emerging markets.

Affordable smartphones are a key component of the Mobile Internet success story. The leading manufacturers in China are now producing a variety of low-cost, high-value devices that are empowering people around the globe to access the Web for the very first time.

Juniper Research estimates that the number of smartphone shipments reached 338 million in the second quarter (Q2) of 2015 -- representing a year-over-year growth of 16 percent.

The global smartphone market continued to mature this quarter, and the gap between vendor winners and losers grew larger. That being said, the ongoing competition is good news for all consumers.

While the launch of the P8 helped Huawei to nearly 50 percent year-over-year growth, Xiaomi shipped 20.5 million, representing an increase of a third compared to this time last year.

Juniper notes that the key difference between these two Chinese vendors is that Huawei is currently making an effort to expand beyond Asia. Xiaomi is not -- leaving it vulnerable to the slowing of the Chinese market, which is also affecting ZTE.

Samsung shipments have continued to decline, although the company reported a more profitable product mix this quarter. The launch for the S6 and S6 Edge, expected to ship between 60 and 70 million by the end of 2015, was blunted by reports of delays in components.

As a result, Samsung has not been able to ship the volumes it anticipated and will be adjusting the price of the devices to boost sales ahead of new high-end model launches expected in Q3. Granted, there remains some pockets of demand for expensive smartphones around the globe.

Apple has been able to exploit its ongoing relationship with current and new iPhone fans, with 47.5 million unit sales -- fueled by growth in China, with year-over-year revenues for the region increasing 112 percent to over $13 billion.

LG posted 14.1 million shipments, representing a year-over-year decline of just under 3 percent.
Microsoft is steadily increasing shipments in the lead up to Windows 10 for phones, shipping 8.4 million devices -- that's a 12 percent increase over last year.

Meanwhile, BlackBerry's decline continued, with shipments just above the 1 million mark as the release schedule is slashed from 4 phones a year to one or two.

Popular posts from this blog

Global Digital Business and IT Consulting Outlook

Across the globe, CEOs and their leadership teams continue to seek information and guidance about planned Digital Transformation initiatives and the most effective enterprise organization change management practices. Worldwide IT and Business Services revenue will grow from $1.13 trillion in 2022 to $1.2 trillion in 2023 -- that's a 5.7 percent year-over-year growth, according to the latest market study by International Data Corporation (IDC). The mid-term to long-term outlook for the market has also increased -- the five-year CAGR is forecast at 5.2 percent, compared to the previous 4.9 percent. Digital Sevices & Consulting Market Development IDC has raised the growth projection despite a weak economic outlook, because of vendor performances across 2022, growth indicators from adjacent markets, increased government funding, and inflation impacts. The actual 2022 market growth was 6.7 percent (in constant currency), which was 87 basis points higher than forecast last year, alth

Why Instant Issuance Payment Cards Evolved

The global financial services sector continues to grow as more progressive organizations seek to gain a meaningful competitive advantage from their digital transformation initiatives. Across the globe, many regions are seeing a significant rise in 'instant issuance' activity from a physical and digital perspective, from both traditional and emerging innovative banking institutions. Digital Payments Market Development Customers increasingly demand instant access to banking services, with physical instant issuance enabling them to leave their branch equipped with a ready-to-go payment card. According to the latest worldwide market study by ABI Research, the market for instantly issued physical payment cards will increase from 243.2 million shipments in 2022 to a forecast of 471.1 million in 2027. "Critically, instant issuance of payment cards is no longer limited to the physical," said Sam Gazeley, industry analyst at ABI Research . Indeed, the growing digitization of p

Digital Talent Demand Exceeds Supply in Asia-Pac

Even the savviest CEO's desire for a digital transformation advantage has to face the global market reality -- there simply isn't enough skilled and experienced talent available to meet demand. According to the latest market study by IDC, around 60-80 percent of Asia-Pacific (AP) organizations find it "difficult" or "extremely difficult" to fill many IT roles -- including cybersecurity, software development, and data insight professionals. Major consequences of the skills shortage are increased workload on remaining digital business and IT employees, increased security risks, and loss of "hard-to-replace" critical transformation knowledge. Digital Business Talent Market Development Although big tech companies' layoffs are making headlines, they are not representative of the overall global marketplace. Ongoing difficulty to fill key practitioner vacancies is still among the top issues faced by leaders across industries. "Skills are difficul