Telecom
2016 Remarkable Year Smartphone Market, 1.47Bn Units Shipped
The holiday quarter of 2016 capped off another positive year of smartphone growth despite concerns about the overall market slowing. According to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, smartphone vendors shipped a total of 428.5 million units during the fourth quarter of 2016 (4Q16), resulting in 6.9% growth when compared to the 400.7 million units shipped in the final quarter of 2015.
For the full year, the worldwide smartphone market saw a total of 1.47 billion units shipped, marking the highest year of shipments on record, yet up only 2.3% from the 1.44 billion units shipped in 2015.
Large markets like China, the United States, and Brazil all ended the year on a strong note helping to keep worldwide volumes in positive territory.
“There’s no question that 2016 marked a memorable year for the smartphone industry in many ways,” said Ryan Reith, program vice president with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers. “This was a year that brought us the first down year for iPhone, yet Apple closed out the holiday quarter by surpassing Samsung for the top spot in the smartphone industry. We also witnessed year-over-year declines in some emerging regions like the Middle East and Latin America where high growth was expected. To round it all off, we now have a three horse race at the top of the market as Huawei cracked the double-digit share mark for the first time ever.”
Despite the changes that 2016 brought upon the market, including annual growth dropping from 10.4% in 2015 to just 2.3% in 2016, IDC expects a few turnarounds in 2017.
First, IDC is forecasting a rebound in iPhone shipments with the yet to be announced tenth anniversary iPhone. Second, the Middle East and Africa (MEA) and Latin America regions are expected to return to growth in 2017. And, as a result of the aforementioned as well as several other driving factors, growth in 2017 should improve slightly from 2016’s results.
“As the two leading players continue to battle for the top spot, several Chinese vendors have solidified their position as valid contenders,” said Anthony Scarsella, research manager with IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. “The top three Chinese vendors (Huawei, OPPO, and vivo) are persistently applying pressure on Samsung within China thanks to a vast portfolio of affordable, well-built devices. Not only is this pressure coming at the low-end, but high-end devices like the P9, Mate 8, R9s, and XPlay6 haven proven viable options for consumers looking to upgrade or save money without sacrificing quality. However, it is worth noting that despite the success of these brands within China, they will need to find growth beyond their home turf to eventually knock off either Samsung or Apple at the top.”
Smartphone Vendor Highlights:
Apple reclaimed the top spot thanks largely to the success of the new iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. Despite a strong fourth quarter, 2016 marked the first full year of declining shipments for the iPhone with a 7% year-over-year drop.
Apple shipped a record 78.3 million units in the fourth quarter, up 4.7% from the same quarter one year ago.
Although the iPhone 7 did not feature a drastically different industrial design from its predecessor, it did bring yet another significantly improved processor, more robust camera, water resistance, and new color/finish options. Much like Samsung, all eyes will be on Apple’s next flagship, and all signs point to something very special for the tenth anniversary of this iconic product.
Samsung dropped to second in the worldwide smartphone market with shipments declining 5.2% compared to last year.
The Korean giant shipped 77.5 million units in 4Q16, down from the 81.7 million units shipped last holiday quarter. On the year, Samsung shipped 311.4 million smartphones worldwide, which was down 3% from the 320.9 million shipments in 2015.
Despite the Note 7 debacle and growing pressure from Chinese vendors, Samsung still managed to find success with its S7 and popular J-series of devices in numerous markets.
The challenging holiday quarter, however, did bring its worldwide market share below 20% for the first time in over four years, leaving no better time for the pending arrival of its next flagship product, the Galaxy S8.
Huawei retained the number three position while gaining worldwide market share in 4Q16. The quarter marked the first time the Chinese giant captured double-digit share with 10.6% of the total shipment volume.
Huawei shipped 45.4 million units in the quarter, up 38.6% from the 32.7 million shipped in the fourth quarter of 2015.
For the year, Huawei shipped 139.3 million units, up 30.2% from the 107 million units shipped in 2015. The P series and Honor sub-brand drove essential volume in China as well as other countries in Asia and beyond.
With proven success in China and many European countries, Huawei now has its sights set on the U.S. Whether or not the U.S. market becomes a serious playing field for Huawei is yet to be determined, but the recent release of the Mate 9 in the U.S. has surely caught the attention of both Apple and Samsung at the high end, while Honor brand devices will continue to drive the mid-tier.
OPPO continued its push to reach the top of the market with its fourth straight quarter of greater than 100% year-over-year growth. OPPO shipped 31.2 million smartphones in the holiday quarter, which was up 117% from the 14.4 million smartphones shipped in 4Q15.
The focus for OPPO over the past year has been international expansion outside of China and so far it has been successful at this. Beyond China, Southeast Asia and India have been the focal points for OPPO’s growth in 2016 supported by intense marketing campaigns and new product launches.
The company also began ramping up its presence in the Middle East and if momentum can pick up, a strong 2017 could be ahead.
Vivo remained the number five vendor with 24.7 million smartphones shipped in the holiday quarter, which was up from the 12.1 million shipped last holiday season. Over the year, vivo shipped a total of 77.3 million smartphones, up 103% from the 38 million last year. The majority of the shipments continue to be in China, however, and much like OPPO, vivo has been extremely aggressive with its marketing in a number of countries in Asia as it looks to extend its global reach.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and the Enugu State Government have signed an agreement for the operational lease of the NCC Digital Industrial Park and NCC Learning Centre in Enugu.
The agreement was witnessed by Dr Aminu Maida, Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the NCC, alongside members of the Commission’s Board and Management.
The development is expected to strengthen digital innovation, skills development and technology-driven opportunities in the state.
As part of the engagement, the NCC delegation also visited the Enugu Smart School Initiative, where technology is being integrated into teaching and learning.
The initiative is aimed at equipping young Nigerians with relevant digital skills and preparing them for future opportunities in an increasingly technology-driven economy.
The NCC said it remained committed to supporting initiatives that expand digital inclusion, strengthen innovation and develop the talent required to drive Nigeria’s digital transformation.
The Commission said partnerships with state governments and other stakeholders were critical to creating an enabling environment for digital skills development and technology adoption across the country.
Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has directed telecommunications operators to make dedicated budgetary provisions for cybersecurity as part of efforts to strengthen the resilience of Nigeria’s communications infrastructure against the growing wave of cyber threats.
The directive forms part of the Commission’s Cyber Resilience Framework for the Nigerian Communications Sector (CRF-NCS), which introduces new governance, risk management and operational requirements aimed at safeguarding the country’s critical telecommunications infrastructure from increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks.
Under the framework, all licensed telecom operators are expected to establish formal cybersecurity governance structures, dedicate adequate financial resources to cyber resilience programmes, and integrate cybersecurity into their enterprise-wide risk management processes.
The Commission said operators must ensure cybersecurity investments are no longer treated as optional operational expenses but as strategic business priorities necessary to protect network infrastructure, customer information and the country’s digital economy.
According to the NCC, licensees are expected to allocate sufficient budgets to support cyber risk assessments, security technologies, staff training, incident response capabilities, continuous monitoring and compliance with regulatory requirements.
The framework also requires operators to designate senior executives responsible for cybersecurity oversight.
At the same time, boards of directors are expected to provide strategic direction and ensure adequate funding for cyber resilience initiatives.
Speaking on the need for a stronger cybersecurity regime during the unveiling of the framework, Abraham Oshadami, executive commissioner, Technical Services, NCC, said, “Given the increasing digitalisation of services, the rapid growth of data exchange, and the sophisticated nature of modern cyber threats, the need for a robust, adaptive and inclusive cybersecurity framework has become more urgent.”
He added, “Both state and non-state actors are targeting essential sectors—including ours—through coordinated cyber and physical attacks. These attacks frequently target control systems and data integrity, underscoring the critical risks posed to operational technology (OT), especially in our sector.”
“As cyber threats evolve, they endanger not only system performance but also human safety, amplifying the severity and consequences of disruptions to vital communications infrastructure. Cybersecurity now encompasses human safety and must address the real risk to people’s lives when a system is attacked or compromised.”
The Commission further stated that operators are required to develop comprehensive cybersecurity implementation plans, conduct periodic risk assessments, establish business continuity and disaster recovery procedures, and regularly test their cyber defence capabilities.
In addition, the framework makes cyber incident reporting compulsory. Licensees must inform the NCC’s CSIRT of any major cybersecurity breach within four hours of discovery, and provide a thorough post-incident analysis after mitigation is complete.
Digital solution provider, Globacom has recorded the highest Internet subscriber growth among Nigeria’s major telecom companies for the month of May.
Data from the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, Nigeria’s total Internet users increased to 157 million in May, up from 154.3 million in April. That is a growth of 2.67 million users in one month.
Globacom led the market by adding about 1.2 million new Internet subscribers. This means Glo was responsible for almost half of all new Internet users in May.
The company’s subscriber base grew from 15.5 million in April to 16.8 million in May. Airtel came second with 1.07 million new users, moving from 54.8 million to 55.8 million. MTN added 382,894 users to reach 83.5 million.
T2 Mobile, formerly 9mobile, recorded no growth for the second month in a row. Its subscriber base remained at 802,534. This is despite its roaming agreement with MTN, which was approved almost a year ago to help T2 customers use MTN’s network in areas with poor coverage.
Industry experts say Glo’s strong growth is due to its ongoing network upgrade. Since last year, the company has been building new base stations, expanding its fibre network, and adding thousands of new 4G sites across cities and rural areas.
The upgrades have improved voice and data quality for customers, while Globacom remain committed to providing better network experience and affordable Internet services to more Nigerians.
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