Mobile Phone Sales

Nokia reports sharp fall in Q4 sales and profits

Paul Rasmussen — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:00:36 -0500

After affecting Ericsson's results earlier this week, the economic downturn has now hit Nokia with the mobile phone giant reporting worse-than-expected fourth quarter sales and profits. The news impacted the Nokia share price which fell by 9 per cent on the Helsinki exchange. The Finnish vendor posted net profits of US$744 million for the three months to 31 Dec. 2008, down a staggering 69 per cent year-on-year, while sales slid 19 per cent to US$16.4 billion.

Nokia is forecasting handset sales will fall by 10 per cent in 2009, double what the company was estimating just a month ago. The overall device market shipped 305 million units in the fourth quarter of 2008, down 9 per cent year-on-year and down 2 per cent sequentially. Nokia's own mobile phone sales were down 15 per cent year-on-year at 113.1 million units and down 4 per cent sequentially. The company's market share in Q4 was 37 per cent, down from 40 per cent in the same quarter in 2007.

Nokia has identified smartphones as the key to growing its market share. Although Nokia currently has around 32 per cent of the smartphone market it believes its smartphone portfolio is heading in the right direction, citing the 5800 and N97 as examples. Nokia plans to focus on five core service areas: music, maps, media, messaging and games.

For more on this story:
- go to ITPro and Cellular News

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3G props up falling mobile handset market

Paul Rasmussen — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:15:49 -0500

Global shipments of mobile handsets fell nearly 5 per cent year-on-year in the period October-November 2008, and with the ongoing economic downturn likely to continue the prospects for 2009 are not looking good. The main impact of the fall has been in the 2G sector which has declined significantly. The good news is that sales of 3G handsets are growing and will rise as a percentage of total sales from 39 per cent to 50 per cent over the next 12 months. ABI Research forecasts WCDMA handset sales will increase from 259 million in 2008 to 725 million in the current year. Smartphone sales are also forecast to increase their market share from 14 per cent in 2008 to 31 per cent in 2013.

The burgeoning mobile broadband market will drive sales of USB modems which will account for 80 per cent of the shipped volume. The cellular modem market overall will increase by more than 55 per cent in the coming year, driven largely by Asian suppliers introducing low-cost devices.

For more:
- go to 3g.co.uk and Mobile Europe

Related articles:
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Nokia cuts mobile phone sales forecast-again

Paul Rasmussen — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:07:30 -0500

Finnish mobile giant Nokia has cut its forecast for mobile phone sales in the current quarter for the third time in less than three months. Within the last month Nokia predicted 330 million mobile phones would be shipped in the last quarter of 2008, a figure the company now feels was optimistic. Nokia would not be drawn into a precise forecast of sales saying only the final number would be lower, presumably meaning lower than 330 million. The company says the entire industry is slowing down and analysts should focus on Nokia's market share rather than actual units sold. Nokia thinks it can increase its market share in 2009 from its present level of 38 per cent. It is also promising reduced capital and operational expenditures.

For more:
- go to The Register

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Economic problems impact mobile phone market

Paul Rasmussen — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:06:44 -0500

In the third quarter of 2008 the percentage growth in mobile phone sales worldwide declined to less than half that achieved in the same period in 2007. According to Gartner's latest mobile phone market analysis, total sales were 309 million units in Q3, a six per cent increase on Q3 2007. The global economic crisis is the main factor impacting on sales.

Market leading manufacturers Nokia and Samsung held up well under the impact of the global economic downturn although the former experienced lower replacement sales in mature and emerging markets. The main effects of the economic problems were felt in the battle for the world number three position currently raging between Sony Ericsson, LG and Motorola. The Gartner report says Sony Ericsson emerged as the winner in the third quarter largely because of the problems being experienced by its rivals.

Mobile phone sales in Western Europe were 43.5 million units in Q3, down from 47.2 million units in 2007. A slowdown in replacement sales adversely affected market performance in the region and will continue to do so in the fourth quarter says Gartner. In Eastern Europe, although a number of countries including Russia, Hungary, the Ukraine and Romania were badly affected by the financial crisis, this did not translate into a downturn in mobile phone sales.

For more on this story go to Telecomredux and Cellular News

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