The overall mobile phone market in India has reached 218 million units in 2012, registering 16% Year on Year growth when compared to calendar year 2011, as per new report released by IDC Asia Pacific.
The IDC report mentions that smartphone shipments in India grew phenomenally well and reached a total of 5.4 million unit shipments.In Q4 2012, smartphones shipment in India registered 38% quarter on quarter growth, contrary to the 5% decline that was seen in the feature phone segment during the same period.
Most of the growth in mobile phone sales has been driven by the burgeoning smartphone market in India which grew from close to 11 million units in 2011 to 16.3 million units in 2012, a significant growth of about 48%.
Android continued its dominance in the Indian smartphone market, however other operating systems such as iOS and Windows Phone 8 is getting leg up. Meanwhile, local vendors such as Micromax continues to hold onto a significant share with attractive price points and upgraded specifications.
The top 5 smartphone vendors ranked based on unit shipments during quarter 4 2012 are Samsung, Micromax, Sony, Nokia and Karboon. Indigenous manufacturer Micromax outperformed the market through its aggressive ramp-up and an enhanced product portfolio and new launches in the past quarter.
Sony witnessed significant shipment share owing to its mid-tier range of smartphones (priced between $150-300) doing quite well in the market. Karbonn has made it to the top 5 list for the first time.
Local vendors have remained dominant in sub-US $100 price band while they pose serious competition to the global vendors in the US$100-US$200 price band. These two segments emerged as the most vibrant and the fastest growing smartphone price band segments in the Indian market.
Apple India shipments saw a sudden surge this quarter, sending it to the second spot in terms of revenue in the overall Smartphone market. The surge in shipments can be attributed to the channel restructuring and the launch of iPhone 5 in 2012 Q4.
