Telecom
Samsung, Huawei Lead Smartphone Shipments Decline for the Fourth Consecutive Quarter
The preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker shows that smartphone vendors shipped a total of 355.2 million units during the third quarter of 2018 (3Q18), resulting in a year-over-year decline of 6.0%.
This was the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year declines for the global smartphone market, which raises questions about the market’s future.
IDC maintains its view that the market will return to growth in 2019, but at this stage it is too early to tell what that growth will look like.
While the overall smartphone market has declined for four straight quarters, two things stand out as major factors in the third quarter.
Samsung, the largest smartphone vendor in terms of market share, accounting for 20.3% of shipments in 3Q18, declined 13.4% year over year in the quarter.
And secondly, China, which is the largest country market for smartphone consumption, accounting for roughly one third of global shipments, was down as well for the sixth consecutive quarter.
Samsung had a challenging quarter with shipments down 13.4% to 72.2 million units shipped.
The market share leader continues to feel pressure from all directions, especially with Huawei inching closer to the top after its second consecutive quarter as the number two vendor.
In addition, growing markets like India and Indonesia, where Samsung has held leading positions for many years, are being changed by the rapid growth of Chinese brands like Xiaomi, OPPO, and vivo.
Meanwhile, China’s domestic market, which represents roughly one third of all smartphones consumed, has been in decline since the second quarter of 2017, and 3Q18 was the sixth consecutive quarter where the market sees contraction.
China was down 11% in the first half of 2018 (1H18), and the challenges continued into 3Q18.
Overall IDC expects this decline to decelerate with the market returning to flat growth in 2019.
Ryan Reith, program vice president with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers, said “China’s domestic market continues to be challenged as overall consumer spending around smartphones has been down,”
“High penetration levels, mixed with some challenging economic times, has slowed the world’s largest smartphone market.
“Despite this, we believe this market will begin to recover in 2019 and beyond, driven in the short term by a large, built up refresh cycle across all segments, and in the outer years of the forecast supported by 5G migration.”
Anthony Scarsella, research manager with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, said “The race at the top of the market continues to be a heated one as Huawei once again slipped past Apple to the second position,”
“Although Huawei may have beat out Apple in Q3, the holiday quarter could have Apple as the market leader thanks to the launch of three new bezel-less devices.
“No matter who leads in the overall market the holiday quarter should be an exciting one with a wide selection of new flagship devices available.
“With the new iPhones, Mate 20, Pixel 3, V40, Note 9, and OnePlus 6T, we can expect consumers will have a plethora of options when upgrade time approaches.
“The vast selection of high-priced handsets should move ASPs in a positive direction come next quarter.”
Smartphone Company highlights shows that Samsung had a very challenging quarter with smartphone shipments down 13.4% from 3Q17, with overall volumes of 72.2 million.
While this was still enough to maintain the top market share position, the company does continue to lose share.
The launch of the Galaxy Note 9 was successful and the device continues to build in shipments.
However, Samsung’s bigger challenge is the ground they are losing at the mid-range and low-end.
Recent announcements of revamping the product portfolio to bring new features and awareness to non-flagship models could possibly help this slide.
Samsung will most likely look to new A-Series devices to fill the gaps left in the mid-tier across numerous markets.
Huawei landed in the number two position for the second straight quarter. While its share was down slightly from last quarter’s 15.9%, overall the company should be pleased with shipping 52.0 million handsets and grabbing 14.6% of the overall market.
From a product perspective, its P-series and recent update to its Mate-series are keeping it as competitive as ever at the top of the market.
And its Honor brand, which is primarily marketed toward a younger audience and online sales, has continued to do well in many markets.
Apple’s newest iPhones helped push third quarter shipments to 46.9 million units, up 0.5% from the 46.7 million units last year.
Apple once again launched three new devices at its Fall event, as the new 6.5-inch iPhone XS Max and 5.8-inch iPhone XS were joined by the more affordable iPhone XR in the Apple line-up.
The new XS Max and XS continue off the success from last year’s iPhone X but bring a new screen size option with more power and increased performance to the table.
And Apple has once again improved the camera, upped the storage, and added a new faster processor via the A12 Bionic chip, which is the first 7-nanometer chip for Apple.
Older iPhones, such as the 6S, 7, and 8, all received price cuts late in the quarter, which will balance the iPhone portfolio across all price tiers for the holiday quarter.
The older SE and iPhone X from last year have been dropped from the Apple line-up. The fourth quarter will include shipments for the vastly popular iPhone XR, which have not been counted in IDC’s Q3 figures.
Xiaomi once again grew its share to a new company high capturing 9.7% of all smartphones shipped worldwide in 3Q18.
Xiaomi continues its global expansion with market share gains in countries where it has been growing it presence, including India and Indonesia, and making headway into European markets like Spain where it continues to cause disruption.
Its Redmi 5A, Redmi 5 Plus, and Redmi Note 5 have continued to do well, with the newer Redmi 6/A/Pro successors ramping up quickly.
OPPO like Samsung saw shipments decline year over year, although on a much smaller scale.
Despite that, OPPO remained the number 5 vendor in terms of market share with 29.9 million shipments in 3Q18, down 2.1% from a year ago.
Like a few of its competitors that continue to climb the smartphone ladder, OPPO is beginning to gain global attention for some of its newer flagship devices that have come with highly marketed launch events.
Designs on the Find X and R17 products are raising the bar for OPPO, and in return they are continuing to see their user ASPs increase.
Telecom
9Mobile Blames Network Outage on Data Center Fire in Lagos
9Mobile, mobile network operator, has blamed a network outage this week on a fire incident at its main data center in Lagos.
The fire is said to have happened on Tuesday night (December 17), leading to network issues for 9Mobile’s customers until Thursday.
9Mobile said it had experienced multiple fiber cuts which had led to some of the disruption.
Its customers have taken to social media to complain about a lack of voice and data services.
9Mobile is estimated to have more than 11 million mobile subscribers.
The latest outage follows a six-day outage that impacted the carrier in July.
“9Mobile sincerely apologizes for the recent service outages experienced by our valued customers which have affected our ability to provide voice, data, and internet services. We understand the frustration these disruptions have caused and deeply regret the inconvenience,” said 9Mobile in a statement.
“Our technical team has identified the root causes of the outages including a fire incident at our main data center in Lagos last night which severely impacted services, especially in the Lagos and South-West. We are grateful for the swift intervention of the Lagos State Fire Service, which helped prevent further damage.”
The cause of the fire was not revealed by the carrier.
Acknowledging the fiber cuts, 9Mobile explained that prior to the fire, a fiber cut on the backbone links in Lagos led to a total data outage across the country. Other vandalism incidents in Lagos and Abuja led to a total service outage in the southwest and a data service outage in the north of the country.
Telecom
Sytemap Announces 50% Discount on Verified Lands for Women, March 8–14, 2025
Sytemap, a trusted leader in land acquisition and technology solutions, is thrilled to announce a groundbreaking initiative designed to empower women through affordable and secure land ownership.
From March 8 to March 14, 2025, women—including professionals in Africa and the diaspora—will enjoy an exclusive 50% discount on plots from verified estate developers through the Sytemap platform.
This initiative, themed “Her Land, Her Future,” underscores Sytemap’s commitment to breaking cultural and economic barriers that have historically sidelined women from property ownership. Partnering with over 30 reputable estate developers, Sytemap is creating unprecedented opportunities for women to invest in land with confidence.
For decades, women in Nigeria and across Africa have faced significant hurdles in land acquisition, including high costs, fear of fraud, and societal biases. In fact, studies show that 65% of victims of land scams in Nigeria are women.
Sytemap’s CEO, Nnamdi Uba, stated, “Women have long been marginalized in land ownership, a critical path to building wealth and security. Our mission is not only to make land ownership accessible but to eliminate the fears and uncertainties that hold women back.”
With this initiative, Sytemap leverages its reputation for transparency and cutting-edge technology to offer a simple, scam-free, and empowering process for land purchase.
The campaign is designed to resonate with young professionals, particularly women with good-paying jobs who are ready to invest in their future. For women in the diaspora, the initiative offers tailored support, including seamless international payment options and an innovative plot-monitoring app that allows buyers to manage their investments from anywhere in the world.
Key Features Include:
50% Discount: Available only during the trade fair window (March 8–14, 2025).
Verified Estates: Secure locations vetted by Sytemap and trusted developers.
Flexible Payment Plans: Options to spread payments over several months to ease financial stress.
Digital Monitoring: A dedicated app to track land purchases and allocation progress.
Guaranteed Transparency: Every outright payment comes with instant, verifiable certificate allocation, with land documents delivered within three weeks.
This initiative will launch during the “Sytemap Land Trade Fair 1.0,” an event bringing together key stakeholders, women’s organizations, and influencers to celebrate this transformative moment. Women in the diaspora are encouraged to participate and take advantage of this life-changing opportunity.
Imagine a future where women are equal stakeholders in property ownership, shaping communities and securing generational wealth.
Sytemap invites women across Africa and the diaspora to claim their space and rewrite the narrative of land ownership.
For more details and to reserve your plot, visit https://sytemap.com/women.
Telecom
Konga to Launch Africa’s First AI-Powered Hit Music & Commerce Radio Station
Konga, a leading composite e-commerce group, is poised to transform the Nigerian media and commerce landscape with the upcoming launch of its AI-powered FM radio station in Lagos.
The groundbreaking initiative, set to debut in January 2025, will mark Africa’s first Hit Music & Commerce Station, blending Technology, Entertainment, Commerce and more to drive impactful connections across the continent and the world.
A reliable source reveals that the station – KongaFM will be a pioneering platform to empower brands, distributors, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to connect with untapped markets, revolutionizing commerce in real time. While offering businesses a new avenue for product visibility and market penetration, the station promises to deliver non-stop hit music, ensuring listeners enjoy a unique mix of entertainment and commercial opportunities. It will be a completely new experience for Nigerians.
Equipped with state-of-the-art broadcasting technology and staffed by a dynamic new blend of seasoned professionals and youthful talent, the station will begin test transmissions in the second week of January 2025.
Konga’s latest media venture comes as part of its broader strategy to disrupt conventional marketing communications and amplify consumer engagement across sectors, including FMCG, electronics, and digital solutions.
The move is expected to send ripples across Nigeria’s FX market, potentially influencing the pricing and availability of key goods and commodities. This aligns with Konga’s history of innovation in the e-commerce sector.
This initiative will also complement Konga’s existing TV arm and other media services, positioning the brand as a dominant force in Marketing Communications. Together, these platforms will create synergies that set new benchmarks for how entertainment and commerce converge in Africa while streaming globally.
When asked for further details, Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, CEO of Konga Group, remained tight-lipped, stating that “full details and official announcements will be made in January 2025.”
The anticipation around this launch continues to grow as industry experts and media enthusiasts eagerly await what is already being hailed as the next major evolution in Africa’s media and commerce space.
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