Gartner Sees Global Mobile Phone Sales Rise 34 Percent in Strong First Quarte
Nokia Continued to Lead the Market, but Its Market Share Dropped 5.7 percent
STAMFORD, Conn., Jun 8, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Worldwide mobile phone sales
totaled 153 million units in the first quarter of 2004, the highest figure for
sales in the first quarter of a year, according to Gartner, Inc. Strong sales in
all regions resulted in worldwide mobile phone sales growing 34 percent from the
first quarter of 2003.
"Another record quarter of mobile phone sales resulted from an Asia/Pacific
market buoyed by purchases for the Chinese New Year, healthy growth in emerging
markets and surprising numbers of people in mature markets choosing to upgrade
their phones," said Ben Wood, principal analyst for mobile terminals research at
Gartner. "Based on first quarter results, we believe worldwide mobile phone
sales will exceed 600 million units in 2004."
All of the top 5 vendors experienced an increase in sales in the first quarter
of 2004 (see Table 1). Nokia's sales increased by nearly 5 million units
worldwide, but it suffered a decline in market share because of decreased sales
in Western Europe and North America. "Nokia's dramatic drop in market share
resulted from a weak product portfolio and the decision by operators in Western
Europe to source more phones from Nokia's competitors," Wood said.
Table 1
Worldwide Mobile Terminal Sales to End-Users for 1Q04
(Thousands of Units)
1Q04 1Q04 Market 1Q03 1Q03 Market
Company Sales Share (%) Sales Share (%)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Nokia 44,237.5 28.9 39,479.2 34.6
Motorola 25,111.0 16.4 16,704.1 14.7
Samsung 19,062.5 12.5 12,303.1 10.8
Siemens 12,285.9 8.0 8,684.6 7.6
Sony Ericsson 8,488.6 5.6 5,384.8 4.7
LG 8,109.9 5.3 5,571.1 4.9
Others 35,708.5 23.3 25,900.3 22.7
Total Market 153,004.0 100.0 114,027.1 100.0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: This table includes shipments of integrated digital enhanced network
(iDEN) and mobile wireless local loop phones. It excludes shipments from
original design manufacturers to original equipment manufacturers.
Source: Gartner Dataquest (June 2004)
After successive disappointing quarters, Motorola's mobile phone sales rebounded
in the first quarter with particularly robust sales in Western Europe. The
popularity of new products based on its "triplets" platform (the V300, V500/525
and V600 phones) helped drive sales. "The challenge for Motorola is to maintain
this strong performance. Now that it has started to regain the trust of key
global operators, it must keep its promises," Wood said. "Given Nokia's recent
price cuts and more flexible approach to working with operators, Motorola can't
afford to be late with new products in the second half of 2004."
Samsung's mobile phone market share reached 12.5 percent in the first quarter,
as its decision to add lower-cost, lower-specification phones to its portfolio
paid off. Its ability to offer mobile terminals across multiple technologies --
Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), code division multiple access
(CDMA) and time division multiple access (TDMA) -- helped drive sales.
On a regional basis, higher-than-expected sales in Western Europe resulted from
the continuation of Christmas sales promotions, as well as buoyant replacement
sales. Gartner expects demand for 3G phones in Western Europe to rise in the
second half of 2004, following the recent launch of 3G offerings by mobile
operators Vodafone, T-Mobile and TIM.
Mobile phone sales in North America grew 30 percent in the first quarter.
Healthy competition between operators of CDMA and GSM networks brought
attractive products to market. Consumers gravitated toward color phones, often
with built-in cameras.
In Asia/Pacific, sales were strong in Australia, China, India and Thailand. In
China, the top Western makers continued to improve their distribution strategies
to counteract growing competition from local and regional rivals. More than 11
million units were sold in Japan.
Additional information is available in the Gartner Alert "Market Share: Mobile
Terminals, Worldwide, 1Q04." The report provides market share results for the
top-tier vendors in worldwide sales, as well as analysis on how the vendors
performed. The report is available on Gartner's Web site at:
www4.gartner.com =email (Due
to the length of this URL, it may be necessary to copy and paste this hyperlink
into your Internet browser's URL address field. You may also need to remove an
extra space in the URL if one exists.)
About Gartner
Gartner, Inc. (NYSE: IT and ITB) is the leading provider of research and
analysis on the global information technology industry. Gartner serves more than
10,000 clients, including chief information officers and other senior IT
executives in corporations and government agencies, as well as technology
companies and the investment community. The Company focuses on delivering
objective, in-depth analysis and actionable advice to enable clients to make
more informed business and technology decisions. The Company's businesses
consist of Gartner Intelligence, research and events for IT professionals;
Gartner Executive Programs, membership programs and peer networking services;
and Gartner Consulting, customized engagements with a specific emphasis on
outsourcing and IT management. Founded in 1979, Gartner is headquartered in
Stamford, Connecticut, and has 3,700 associates, including more than 1,000
research analysts and consultants, in more than 75 locations worldwide. For more
information, visit www.gartner.com.
SOURCE: Gartner, Inc.
CONTACT: Gartner
Christy Pettey, 408-468-8312
christy.pettey@gartner.com
or
Laurence Goasduff, +44 1784 26 7195
laurence.goasduff@gartner.com
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KEYWORD: CONNECTICUT
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TELECOMMUNICATIONS
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