INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Mobile Technology
Africa’s biggest markets
drive strong growth in
smartphone shipments
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A
total of 22.4 million smartphones
were shipped in Africa during the
second quarter of this year (Q2
2018), according to the latest insights from
International Data Corporation (IDC).
The global technology research and
consulting firm’s Quarterly Mobile Phone
Tracker shows that Africa’s smartphone
shipments increased 9.8% quarter-on-quarter
(QoQ) and 6% year-on-year (YoY) in Q2 2018.
The market’s buoyant performance was
spurred by the growing popularity of
low-end to mid-range devices. Transsion
brands continued to lead the continent’s
smartphone space in Q2 2018, accounting
35.4% of shipments. Samsung followed in
second place with a 23.2% share.
By contrast, the feature phone market was
down 1.1% QoQ and 5.8% YoY in Q2 2018,
but – with shipments totaling 31.4 million units
– these devices still constitute a 58.3% share
of Africa’s overall mobile phone market as they
cater to the needs of the continent’s huge low-
income population (mainly in rural areas) by
providing basic mobile communications that
are priced very competitively.
Telco and Itel continued to lead feature
phone category in Q2 2018 with a combined
unit share of 59.9%, followed in third place
by HMD on 9%.
Looking at the overall picture, the region’s
combined mobile phone market totalled 53.8
million units in Q2 2018, with shipments up
3.2% QoQ but down 1.2% YoY.
The continent’s two biggest markets –
Nigeria and South Africa – saw a marked
improvement in the performance of their
overall mobile phone markets, posting YoY
growth of 13% and 25%, respectively.
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“The Nigerian economy remains
stable and has begun to show
signs of steady improvement
in terms of consumer demand
for mobile phones,” said IDC
Research Analyst Arnold Ponela.
“The country saw smartphone
shipments of 2.7 million units in
Q2 2018, up 15.8% YoY, with
strong marketing support from
telecom operators for most
brands proving instrumental.
However, ongoing currency
issues and falling consumer
purchasing power suggest
Nigeria is not set for a sustained
surge in smartphone shipments.”
South Africa remains
the continent’s most developed
telecommunications market, with
smartphone shipments up 17.4% YoY in Q2
2018 to total 3.4 million units.
“Numerous new entrants to the South
African market are now offering affordable
smartphones that boast very similar features
to the leading brands,” added Ponela. “As
such, we expect the country’s migration
away from feature phones to continue at
a progressive pace. This transition from
feature phones to smartphones is reflected
by the fact that the market continues to be
dominated by low-end to mid-range devices
priced below US$150.”
IDC’s research shows that 4G LTE networks
are spreading their reach in Africa, with
shipments of 4G LTE devices increasing
11.8% QoQ in Q2 2018 to constitute 62.6%
of the smartphone market.
“Despite a drop in the prices of entry-level
4G phones, 2G and 3G mobile devices
remain far more economical, making it
difficult for operators to migrate clients over
to newer technologies,” said Ramazan Yavuz,
a research manager at IDC. “Price sensitivity
means that many African consumers prefer
to stick with 3G phones and this is likely to
continue until 4G devices fall to a price point
where they are affordable to a much larger
segment of the continent’s consumer base.”
Looking ahead, IDC expects Africa’s overall
mobile phone market to grow 2.6% QoQ in
Q3 2018, with overall shipments to increase
slightly through 2018, leading to YoY growth
of 0.4% for the year.
“IDC predicts that 5G phones will reach
the market in 2020, when rollouts of 5G
networks will start in selected African
countries,” added Yavuz.
“However, demand for feature phones is
unlikely to be impacted significantly as these
devices will continue to serve a purpose in
areas with no LTE coverage.” n
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