Press Release: Samsung No.1 Smartphone Brand Again In Q1

Samsung No.1 Smartphone Brand Again In Q1
     01 May 12

Samsung defies logic with post-holiday q-o-q growth
Apple's shipments fall only marginally due to iPhone mix
iPhone revenues continue to top the charts

Data from leading mobile analyst firm Juniper Research shows Samsung and Apple trading places once again in the smartphone market, in what is increasingly becoming a two-horse race. In the first quarter of 2012, the company estimates that nearly 60% of the 139 million smartphones shipped worldwide carried either the Apple (35.1 million) or Samsung (46.9 million) brand - up from 46% in the last three months of 2011. While Apple and Samsung have taken it in turns to lead the smartphone market over the last four quarters, it seems as if Samsung may now have established a firm lead in this space - shipping 11.8 million more units that the Cupertino, California company in Q1.

Samsung Tops Sales, But Apple leads in Revenue:

With the iPhone launch craze now past, the analyst firm believes Samsung may hold onto its lead next quarter, but as Daniel Ashdown, Research Analyst with Juniper Research notes: "Apple's revenues from its 'mobile division' continues to remain significantly higher than Samsung's, even when you take into account the latter's featurephones". Apple's iPhone revenue was $22.7 billion in Q1 ($29.3 billion including the iPad), compared with Samsung's KRW18.9 trillion ($17.0 billion) from its entire mobile division. While flagship devices, the Samsung Galaxy SII and Galaxy Note contribute substantial unit volumes, the company's rise to top spot is evidence of the smartphone's entry into mass market price points with products like the Galaxy Y.

Rich-Pickings Still to be had for HTC, Nokia and RIM:

HTC - who have not released shipment volumes for the last two quarters - appears to be following Nokia and RIM in taking-stock of where it's best strategy lies. Nokia's Lumia launches do not appear to have kick-started a rival yet, with the Finnish company shipping just 11.9 million smart devices in the first quarter - less than half the number it shipped in the same period a year previous. RIM's recent results - which run to a different financial schedule - nevertheless hint at continuing problems for the Canadian firm. However, with Juniper forecasting that smartphone shipments will nearly double over the next five years - from nearly 600 million in 2012 to 1.1 billion by 2017 - there are still plenty of opportunities for other players to make gains in this market.

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A whitepaper 'The Smartphone Opportunity' and further details of Juniper's report, 'Smartphone Evolution Strategies: Premium, Standard & Economy Markets 2011-2016' are available at juniperresearch.com