Samsung dominates Indian smartphone race in Q4 2012, Apple quickly closing the gap

Considering the year Samsung has had in 2012, it’s certainly not surprising that the company also dominated the Indian smartphone race in Q4 2012, both in terms of volume (33%) and revenue (38.8%) according to an IDC report. Apart from the obvious fan-favorites, the Samsung Galaxy S3 and the Galaxy Note 2, Samsung has also released a slew of low-end to mid-range devices, which has played a big role in getting the company the number one spot in a budget-conscious market like India.

Local manufacturer Micromax saw its strategy of flooding the market with budget-friendly Android smartphones pay off, claiming 12.8% market share in terms of volume and second place behind Samsung. The company should continue to see growth in the first quarter of 2013 as well, with the release of the highly-anticipated Micromax A116 Canvas HD, India’s first budget quad-core device. Of course, considering the low cost of the company’s devices, the revenue share isn’t somewhat poor.

Apple has seen its revenue market share grow from 3.9% to 15.6% in just one quarter, after the company finally decided to take interest in a “non-priority” market. The jump is to be expected after Apple decided to sell iPhones through retail stores as well, as opposed to its earlier strategy of selling the device only through network carriers. While the jump in volume market share to 4.7% moves the company up to 5th spot, considering the premium pricing of Apple products, it’s revenue share puts the company in second place, ahead Sony (third), Nokia (fourth), Micromax, Blackberry and HTC.
Apple is quickly catching up to Samsung, but the numbers should continue to be in favor of the Korean company, considering the highly-anticipated launch of the Galaxy S4 flagship, which could happen as early as April in India.
What are your thoughts? Are you surprised that Samsung is number one in the Indian smartphone race? Do you think Apple’s sudden success will continue?

SOURCES ECONOMICTIMES

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