Despite continuous efforts and solid product launches, OEMs that used to lead the smartphone race are now struggling to get a hold of the market. As expected, the major reason behind this plummet is the ascending levels of more economical and attractive launches from Chinese manufacturers as well as other new entrants. Troubles for big names including Samsung and even Apple have been drastically growing as these companies gradually expand their reaches even outside of Asia.
A recent report has revealed that Samsung is gaining positive numbers only in the US and the UK. The Korean giant faced a startling downfall mostly in China and Italy with intent numbers in Germany and Australia. Unsurprisingly, the crucial factor affecting their growth is the stiff competition being offered by Huawei which has been doing astonishingly well especially in China thanks to their impressive releases in the past couple of months. Even Xiaomi has been trumped by a considered fraction in their own hometown. Customers in the US and the UK are, although, yet to be influenced by this wave. Moreover, they’ve replaced Sony and HTC to conquer the third place in Germany and Australia respectively.
HTC has been almost faded away with over 64 percent of sales drop compared to last year. Unless their new flagship and upcoming handsets this year perform decently, things are going to be tough for them. They’re still miles away from releasing the HTC 10 in demanding markets like India where launch timings are all that matters. On the other side of Taiwanese booth, Asus has managed to grab the third position in the Android arena with almost 8.2 percent of the market and an impressive quadruple rise in Italy within a year. Xiaomi is struggling as the company’s sales haven’t been able to move up their ranking from third in China with merely 18.4% of the entire share. ZTE encountered above average growth in Germany, Australia, and the US, however, they lost about a percent of sales (2.1 percent to 1.2 percent) in their native country.
The smartphone market is advancing rapidly with better and cheaper options pouring in from Chinese as well as other new players. Companies like Apple and Samsung are falling behind as they are unable to provide a firm rationale behind their products’ hefty price tags. As a result, consumers are turning their heads to better value for money alternatives. While, numbers have been flowing steadily in areas outside Asia, they may soon face a substantial flip.