In a new study from Gartner, worldwide sales of mobile phones to users in the third quarter of 2007 reached 289 million units, a 15% increase from the same period last year. The top five vendors increased their market shares and accounted for 81.6 per cent of the global market share.
Sales by Manufacturer
- Nokia remained the top seller with 110.2 million units reaching a market share of 38.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2007.
- Samsung went from the number 3 vendor to the the number 2 vendor due to weak Motorola sales selling 41.8 million units .
- Motorola’s market share dropped 7.6 percentage points from the third quarter of 2006, relegating the vendor to the No. 3 position, after selling 37.7 million units.
- Sony Ericsson’s positive performance continued in the third quarter of 2007 as sales reached 25.4 million units.
- LG sold 20.5 million units in the third quarter of 2007 and reached a market share of 7.1 per cent.
Sales by Region
- North America sales to users reached 45 million units in the third quarter of 2007, a 10.3% increase from the same period in 2006.
- Sales of mobile phones in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa reached 49.6 million units in the third quarter of 2007.
- Asia/Pacific, mobile phone sales rose to 101.8 million units, a 26% increase from the third quarter of 2006.
GARTNER: Worldwide Mobile Phone Sales Grew 15% in Third Quarter of 2007
Gartner, Inc.
Gartner Says Worldwide Mobile Phone Sales Grew 15 Per Cent
in Third Quarter of 2007
- Top Five Vendors Achieved 81. 6 Per Cent Global Market Share
Worldwide sales of mobile phones to end users in the third quarter of 2007 reached 289 million units, a 15 per ent increase from the same period last year, according to Gartner, Inc.
The top five vendors increased their market shares and accounted for 81.6
per cent of the global market share.
“Even though relatively few models were introduced this quarter, overall
sales exceeded expectations. Mobile phone sales were mainly driven by
strong performances in Asia/Pacific and Eastern Europe, the Middle East
and Africa,” said Carolina Milanesi, research director for mobile devices
research at Gartner, based in Egham, UK. “The third quarter also saw
Samsung gain the No. 2 position taking advantage of Motorola’s
continued weak performance.”
Nokia’s mobile phone sales to end users totaled 110.2 million units
reaching a market share of 38.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2007.
This quarter, Nokia not only exhibited the highest year-on-year market
share increase, but also raised operating margins thanks to effective
cost management and global distribution strategy. This was achieved
despite the average price of its phones falling from EUR90 to EUR82. The
lower average price was linked to the higher proportion of ultra-low cost
devices sold in the quarter. Nokia was also the main provider of those
devices as Motorola shifted focus away from them.
Samsung’s sales to end users reached 41.8 million units and saw the
vendor gain the No. 2 position as it better managed its channel
inventory. Sales of its Ultra Edition II series continued to gain
momentum in key markets such as Western Europe, where Samsung reached 21
per cent market share, its strongest performance in the region. “Samsung
will have to continue to closely manage its inventory in the last quarter
of the year so they do not to start 2008 on the wrong foot,” Ms Milanesi
said.
Motorola’s sales into the channel remained weak and, with limited surplus
stock, sales to end users were not enough to maintain its No. 2 position.
Motorola’s market share dropped 7.6 percentage points from the third
quarter of 2006, relegating the vendor to the No. 3 position. “Motorola
today is a pale version of the company it was a year ago,” Ms Milanesi
added. Although the Razr2 was well received and accounted for 900,000 of
the overall sales, Motorola needs a much stronger portfolio to return to
its former market share.
Sony Ericsson’s positive performance continued in the third quarter of
2007 as sales reached 25.4 million units. As Sony Ericsson built up sales
volume and presence in some regions, such as Latin America, it also saw a
slight increase in inventory among distributors. “With Sony Ericsson’s
change in leadership earlier this quarter, we are hoping that Mr.
Komiyama’s expertise of the US market might help Sony Ericsson make some
inroads in what remains the vendor’s weakest point,” Ms Milanesi said.
LG sold 20.5 million units in the third quarter of 2007 and reached a
market share of 7.1 per cent. LG faced stronger competition in markets
such as India, where the code division multiple access (CDMA) market has
become challenging as operators closed deals with new entrants such as
ZTE.
Regional Analysis
In Asia/Pacific, mobile phone sales rose to 101.8 million units, a 26 per
cent increase from the third quarter of 2006. India saw the largest
growth, reaching 24.5 million units during the quarter. “India’s
performance was driven by CDMA phones and fierce competition among
operators of global systems for mobile communications (GSM) networks,
which stimulated sales of replacement phones and allowed operators to
penetrate rural areas quickly,” said Ann Liang, principal analyst for
mobile devices research at Gartner, based in Taiwan. In mature markets,
demand for replacement phones gravitated toward the extremes and saw
sales of mid-tier models flatten out, while those at the high and low
ends increased.
Sales of mobile phones in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa
reached 49.6 million units in the third quarter of 2007, a 3.5 per cent
increase from the same period last year. Growth in the region remained
strong as mobile operators in Africa continued to add new subscribers to
their networks. Sales in markets such as Russia and Ukraine picked up
slightly compared with previous quarters. In addition, seasonality in
many countries of the Middle East helped as sales grew after the
Ramadan period.
In Japan, sales to end users in the third quarter of 2007 were 13.1
million units, an increase of 21.8 per cent from the third quarter of
2006. “Japan performed extremely well this quarter, exhibiting one of the
strongest performances worldwide. Sales to end users exceeded sales to
the distribution channel by about one million units and excessive
inventory that was built up in the second quarter of 2007 was
successfully reduced in the third quarter,” said Nahoko Mitsuyama,
principal analyst for mobile communications research at Gartner, based
in Tokyo.
Sales of mobile handsets to end users in Latin America reached 32.2
million units in the third quarter of 2007, an increase of 8 per cent
from the same period last year. Despite a decline in new subscribers,
aggressive technology migrations and healthy upgrade and replacement
sales helped maintain the market’s overall performance this quarter,”
said Tuong Nguyen, analyst for mobile devices research at Gartner, based
in Arlington, Virginia. Brazilian operator Vivo continued to make notable
progress with its CDMA-to-GSM migrations, helping the vendor more than
double its number of GSM subscribers this quarter.
The North American handset market continued to exhibit strong growth.
Sales to end users reached 45 million units in the third quarter of 2007,
a 10.3 per cent increase from the same period in 2006. “The Apple iPhone
was a major catalyst for AT&T’s performance this quarter, as it drove
customers into AT&T stores. Apple iPhone sold more than one million units
in its first quarter,” said Hugues De La Vergne, principal analyst for
mobile devices research at Gartner, based in Dallas, Texas. The quarter
also showed sales of significant new products from major vendors, in
preparation for what Gartner predicts should be a record fourth-quarter
holiday season.
Sales of mobile phones in Western Europe reached 47.2 million units, a
14.9 per cent increase year-on-year. Even though only a small number of
new models were launched in the third quarter, replacement sales remained
strong. New connections continued to exhibit growth, up 2.3 percent from
last quarter, driving average penetration in the region to 115 per cent
and reached more than 100 per cent penetration in all countries except
France. “We expect the fourth quarter to be particularly strong in terms
of shipments, as new models from key players such as Nokia and Sony
Ericsson will arrive well in time for Christmas. The long-awaited iPhone
will have been on sale since early November in the UK and Germany and
available later this month in France,” said Ms Milanesi.
“Although the third quarter of 2007 was stronger than we anticipated, we
are confident that sales in the fourth quarter will continue to be
strong. We expect a quarter-on-quarter growth of at least 10 per cent
and, possibly, as high as 15 per cent. This would result in worldwide
mobile phone sales for 2007 being in line with our expectations of 1.134
billion units or slightly higher,” concluded Ms Milanesi.
More information is available in the Gartner report “Dataquest Insight:
Market Share for Mobile Devices, 3Q07”. The report is available on
Gartner’s website at www.gartner.com
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