Strategy Analytics: Global Smartphone Shipments Surge to 77 Million Units in Q3 2010

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global smartphone shipments grew an impressive 78 percent annually to reach a record 77 million units in the third quarter of 2010. Apple was the star performer, as it overtook RIM and closed the gap on Nokia.

“Global smartphone shipments grew 78 percent from a year earlier, the industry’s fastest rate since the mid-2000s. However, the surging volumes are placing heavy demands on component suppliers and moderate shortages of select components are emerging ahead of the Q4 holiday season.”

Tom Kang, Director at Strategy Analytics, said, “Global smartphone shipments grew an impressive 78 percent annually to reach a record 77 million units in Q3 2010. Apple was the star performer during the quarter, as it captured a record 18 percent marketshare, overtook RIM and closed the gap on Nokia.”

Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “Global smartphone shipments grew 78 percent from a year earlier, the industry’s fastest rate since the mid-2000s. However, the surging volumes are placing heavy demands on component suppliers and moderate shortages of select components are emerging ahead of the Q4 holiday season.”

Other findings from the research include:

• Nokia shipped record smartphone volumes of more than 26 million units, but this was not sufficient to prevent its global marketshare dipping to a low of 34 percent;
• RIM continues to be hampered by a limited presence in the high-growth touchscreen segment and consequently its global smartphone marketshare has edged down from 20 percent to 16 percent during the past 12 months.

Exhibit 1: Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments and Market Share in Q3 2010
Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments (Millions of Units)	Q3 '09	2009	Q3 '10
Nokia	16.4	67.8	26.5
Apple	7.4	25.1	14.1
RIM	8.5	34.5	12.4
Others	11.1	47.3	24.1
Total	43.4	174.7	77.1
Global Smartphone Vendor Market Share %	Q3 '09	2009	Q3 '10
Nokia	37.8%	38.8%	34.4%
Apple	17.0%	14.4%	18.3%
RIM	19.6%	19.7%	16.1%
Others	25.6%	27.1%	31.3%
Total	100.0%	100.0%	100.0%

The full report, Apple Overtakes RIM as Global Smartphone Shipments Reach 77 Million Units in Q3 2010, is published by the Strategy Analytics Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, details of which can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/2cpmn32.

About Strategy Analytics:

Strategy Analytics is a global, independent research and consulting firm. The company is headquartered in Boston, USA, with offices in the UK, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and China. Visit www.strategyanalytics.com for more information.