Mobile phones are considered basic necessities by billions of people, but a weak global economy is forcing many to stick with their current model instead of upgrading. The latest data on the worldwide mobile phone market shows that shipments increased just 6.1% in the fourth quarter of last, down from 9.3% in the third quarter.
“The mobile phone market exhibited unusually low growth last quarter, which shows it is not immune to weaker macroeconomic conditions worldwide,” said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker. “The introduction of high-growth products such as the iPhone 4S, which shipped in the fourth quarter, bolstered smartphone growth. Yet overall market growth fell to its lowest point since [the third quarter of 2009] when the global economic recession was in full bloom.”
Nokia held onto its position as the market leader, shipping 113.5 million units last quarter, even as demand slackened for feature phones, still Nokia’s core strength. Samsung came on strong, shipping 97.6 million phones. The wildly poplular iPhone 4S boosted Apple’s sales to 37 million units, making the Cupertino, Calif., giant a distant No. 3, but propelling it from its previous position at No. 5 in global mobile phone sales.
