The smartphone market has hit a milestone, breaking through 300 million shipments per quarter for the first time, new research has revealed.
A report into the global smartphone market by Canalys showed Samsung is suffering from channel inventory issues and increased competition, despite it retaining the number one slot. Its share slipped nine percentage points to 25 percent of shipments during the third quarter.
Despite its market leading position, Samsung has been suffering financially as newer products have failed to catch on in the way its earlier flagships did. Its third quarter profits tumbled by 60 percent, with critics claiming the company needs to innovate more if it is to remain at the top of the market.
The popularity of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus helped Apple to notch up a 13 percent share. Rising star Xiaomi was third with six percent, followed by Lenovo and Huawei, both of whom had a five percent share of the smartphone market.
Canalys VP and Principal Analyst Chris Jones said: “The global market is becoming more competitive, with vendors beyond Samsung and Apple enjoying growing success. A year ago, in Q3 2013, Samsung and Apple together accounted for 48% of worldwide smart phone shipments. While still impressive, in Q3 2014 this had slipped to 38%. This trend is likely to continue. It is down to the strong value proposition and increasing quality of products offered across all price points by competing vendors, most notably Chinese companies. In fact, six of the top 10 global vendors in Q3 are based in China.”
He added that Xiaomi’s performance had been buoyed by success in its native Chinese market and gains across Asia. The figures do not include Lenovo’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility. If the takeover had been taken into consideration, the smartphone maker would have reported an eight percent share.
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