IDC says Korean and US phone makers benefit

Korean cellphone makers had one of their best quarters ever in the fall for market share, according to IDC. Samsung and LG have grown by nearly a third from late 2008 to late 2009 and now occupy 21.1 percent and 10.4 percent of the market respectively, giving them comfortable second- and third-place spots. Sony Ericsson and Motorola fell by an even higher ratio to just 4.5 and 3.7 percent each, while even market leader Nokia held almost flat at 39 percent.

The analyst group doesn't provide full details of smartphone share but does explain that much of the sustained growth in Western Europe was helped by Apple's iPhone and RIM's BlackBerry line in addition to Nokia. It also pointed to the iPhone having an unusual amount of sway in Canada as all three major carriers in the country now have the handset.

Much of the Korean influence is credited to their catering to developing areas, such as creating phones just for these regions or adapting to the local climate. Both also still had a foothold in the high-end with phones like Samsung's Omnia II. Performance in the market could potentially shift as Motorola and Sony Ericsson have finally begun producing smartphones of their own that stand to be reasonably successful, particularly the Motorola Droid/Milestone and the Sony Ericsson Satio.

The IDC team estimates that the smartphone field grew by about 30 percent from 2008 to 2009 and that the growth is only likely to accelerate this year as the emphasis moves away from voice to data.

By Electronista Staff