After profitable the worldwide smartphone gross sales struggle for a whole yr for the primary time in historical past in 2023, Apple was unable to begin 2024 on a equally excessive be aware, giving again its crown to Samsung on the finish of the primary quarter.
However as a result of the cellular business could be very hardly ever a real black-and-white affair, there are numerous shades of grey surrounding each Samsung and Apple’s Q1 2024 ends in key areas world wide. In India, as an example, one market analysis agency named Samsung the quarter’s quantity champion a couple of weeks in the past, whereas one other one is simply rating the corporate in third place within the nation at the moment.
How dangerous is that outcome for Samsung?
Not as dangerous because it sounds, thoughts you, as Samsung continues to be ranked
first for value in India’s smartphone market between January and March 2024. Meaning the Korea-based large offered essentially the most useful gadgets general within the area in that interval regardless of being eclipsed by Vivo and Xiaomi so far as the precise variety of models is worried.
Even higher, Samsung will undoubtedly be delighted to see its worth share boosted from 23 p.c in Q1 2023 to 25 p.c now… regardless of its quantity share dropping from 20.3 to 17.5 p.c in the identical interval.
What’s weird in regards to the new Counterpoint Analysis charts is that they are radically completely different from
the data presented by Canalys in April for a similar year-opening quarter. Whereas one analysis agency places Vivo above all different distributors, its rival sees Vivo barely make the rostrum.
Apparently, Xiaomi is the silver medalist in each studies, a minimum of so far as shipments are involved. When it comes to worth, in the meantime, Apple follows Samsung with a 19 p.c slice of the pie, narrowly beating Vivo and simply preserving Xiaomi and Oppo at a cushty distance.
Curiously sufficient, Apple’s worth share is by some means down from 22 to 19 p.c whereas the iPhone 15 collection is hailed as an absolute native blockbuster. The corporate’s Indian revenues are mentioned to have set a brand new quarterly report, in order that small decline can solely be defined by different manufacturers breaking their very own information as effectively… by bigger margins.
Clearly, premium telephones are getting greater and larger within the nation (by way of mainstream reputation and never simply display dimension), producing necessary beneficial properties for the likes of OnePlus and Motorola along with Apple, Samsung, and Vivo.
What’s on the horizon?
In a single phrase, development. In two phrases, stable development. In additional phrases, “single-digit development in 2024, pushed by sturdy premiumization (that is not an actual phrase, is it?), 5G adoption, and post-COVID upgrades.” So, no, it is in all probability not honest to count on explosive gross sales development, however that “premiumization” development implies that revenue margins and common costs will proceed to go up for lots of manufacturers, and one thing tells us that the majority of those manufacturers would relatively see that occur than double-digit quantity progress.
Samsung, as an example, has reached a brand new all-time excessive ASP (common promoting value) of $425 for its smartphones in India, a quantity primarily boosted by the early success of the Galaxy S24 household and secondarily by the mid-range Galaxy A portfolio.
That is clearly anticipated to leap even greater with the upcoming launch of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6, and the identical might occur for the likes of Apple and OnePlus within the subsequent few months as new high-end fashions both see daylight or proceed to promote like hotcakes.
Imagine it or not, the model that grew essentially the most within the area through the first three months of the yr was Nothing, which is nevertheless nonetheless unlikely to rise to the native prime 5 anytime quickly. Motorola’s shipments additionally jumped by an unbelievable 58 p.c, whereas Xiaomi, Transsion, and Realme’s numbers all made stable, Samsung and Apple-beating progress of their very own. Briefly, India stays a really crowded and massively aggressive market the place all types of various firms are engaged in a fierce battle for supremacy and development.
