The Grey Market for Handsets ...
A new 50 page ARCchart report provides a global assessment of the grey handset ecosystem. In addition to considering the wider legitimate handset industry the report which is available in PDF format for £995 provides study of the industry history, value chain and market dynamics. The report also provides detailed market forecasts for grey and legitimate handset shipments from 2012 to 2016, at a global, regional and country level. Historical figures for 2010 and 2011 are also provided ...
arcchart.com
Grey market handsets (which now includes smartphones) are typically not included in the sell-in numbers estimated quarterly by 3rd parties.
The following paragraphs are excerpted from the reports Executive Summary.
>> Grey Handsets: Market Analysis and Forecasts
ARCchart
Executive Summary
Grey handsets are typically intended to copy, or at least resemble, handsets made by established OEMs such Nokia, Samsung and Apple, and have been gaining traction ever since their initial entry into the handset market in 2005. Grey handsets are not recognized or licensed by government regulators and employ fake International Mobile Equipment Identity (IMEI) numbers. Producers of these devices generally do not pay value-added taxes and, therefore, profit illegally from their participation in the market. ... <snip>.
Driven by a growing popularity amongst cost-conscious consumers demanding high-end features at affordable prices, ARCchart expects the grey market will continue to grow over the next two years, eventually peaking in 2013, with nearly 150 million shipments. In conjunction with legitimate handset shipments, we expect grey handset shipments will witness a decline from 2013 onwards.
The availability of reference designs and turnkey software solutions from chip suppliers like MediaTek drastically lowered the entry barrier to the handset manufacturing industry. As a result, thousands of handset manufacturing facilities sprang up in China almost overnight, many of them illegitimate. Today, grey handsets are often first to introduce features that most legitimate phones do not have, such as dual SIM functionality, yet at lower cost compared to original phones. This has helped them attain considerable penetration levels, accounting for a much as 14% of the overall handset market in several Asia Pacific markets and a worldwide average of 7%.
While most grey handsets initially catered to the low-end segment, 2011 saw manufacturers venture into the smartphone market where grey handsets would typically retail between $60 and $120. With features similar to high-end legitimate phones such as the iPhone or a Samsung Galaxy, but at a fraction of the price, grey smartphones have been quick to attract consumer attention. As a result, grey handset shipments reached an all time high of 125 million units in 2011. This coincided with the penetration of grey handsets into lucrative markets such as Western Europe and North America for the first time. ###
- Eric - |
