Nokia just can’t catch a break. Though Nokia still reigns supreme when it comes to overall mobile marketshare, it’s inability to deliver a competitive smartphone to the masses has turned the Finnish- based handset maker into an afterthought in a market dominated by iPhones, BlackBerrys, and Android devices.
With no high-margin and successful smartphone to speak of, Nokia’s financial situation isn’t terribly exciting, and there has subsequently been some stockholder clamoring for a change in leadership at the top. With that in mind, it wasn’t all that surprising when Nokia two weeks ago announced a corporate restructuring designed to make the company more efficient and more capable of responding to changes and trends in the marketplace.
In the meantime, Nokia has to worry about losing their position as the top smartphone manufacturer in Australia. Though they’ve long dominated the Australian market, iPhone growth in the country is accelerating at a much faster clip than any other handset. 230% year over year to be exact. Crikey! (sorry, couldn’t resist).
In looking at Australian smartphone sales from the first quarter of 2010, IDC analyst Mark Novosel observes that if iPhone and Nokia handset sales maintain their current rate, Apple will most likely replace Nokia as the top smartphone manufacturer in the land down under before the year is up.
Meanwhile, Novosel also notes that while sales of Google Android devices continue to trend upwards, they still have a long ways to go before even coming close to catching up to the iPhone. On the flip side, one company with simply no luck at all is Microsoft, whose line of Windows Mobile smartphones continue to do nothing in the Australian marketplace. And though Windows Phone 7 devices will launch later this year, the iPhone 4G will have already been out for a few months time at that point.
Fri, May 21, 2010
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