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August 04, 2014

Xiaomi Takes Fifth Place Among Global Smartphone Manufacturers

There is a rising star in the mobile telephony market. A press release from research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics shows that Xiaomi moved into fifth place among the mobile giants by capturing five percent of the overall global smartphone shipments in the second quarter of 2014.

This is the first time in Xiaomi's history that the company has moved into the fifth spot and has gathered so much public attention regarding its smartphones. The company reportedly is popular in China, and it will soon be reaching out to markets throughout Asia and Europe where customers are largely unfamiliar with the brand.

Linda Sui, Director at Strategy Analytics, commented on the overall nature of global smartphone shipments through Q2 this year.

"Global smartphone shipments grew 27 percent annually from 233.0 million units in Q2 2013 to 295.2 million in Q2 2014," Sui said. "Smartphone growth was mixed on a regional basis during the quarter, with healthy demand in Asia and Africa counterbalanced by sluggish volumes across North America and Europe due to changes in the operator subsidy mix."

Among Xiaomi's competitors, Samsung gathered 25 percent of the market share this past quarter, and although that still places it in the top spot with respect to its market share, it has dropped from gathering nearly 33 percent of the market in the same quarter last year. Apple, in second place, also saw its market share drop compared to last year, from approximately 13 percent to 12 percent.

Compared to the two kings in the top two spots, Huawei, Lenovo, and Xiaomi saw gains, though they all still remain in single digits regarding their respective market shares. Huawei moved from 4.8 to 6.8 percent, Lenovo gained nearly a point from 4.8 percent to 5.4 percent, Xaomi jumped from 1.8 percent to 5.1 percent, more than doubling its market share from last year's second quarter.

LG still lags behind its competitors, in sixth place, with only a 4.9 percent market share. It dropped from 5.2 percent in the same quarter last year.

Woody Oh, director at Strategy Analytics, commented on Xiaomi's future and the difficulty it may experience when venturing into new markets.

"Xiaomi's Android smartphone models are wildly popular in the Chinese market and it shifts millions of them every quarter through its extensive online and operator channels," Oh said. "Xiaomi's next step is to target the international market in Asia and Europe, where it will have to invest big money to familiarize western consumers with its unfamiliar brand name."




Edited by Adam Brandt


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