Global smartphone ownership to hit 1bn by 2013
More than one billion people worldwide will own a smartphone by 2013, according to a new report from Futuresource Consulting.
David Luu, senior market analyst at Futuresource, said: “Last year, mobile phone ownership exceeded four billion users – which equates to nearly 60% of the world’s population.
“And in the face of a handset market which is slowing on the whole, smartphone sales are rising fast, with our year-end forecasts for 2009 showing smartphone sales representing 17% of total handset shipments.”
He added that “continued smartphone development and the trend towards cloud computing” could impact the laptop and netbook market, although “it’s unlikely we’ll see any impact here for three to four years at least.”
Analysts Gartner recently forecast that the mobile device market will see an upturn in fortunes this year, with sales set to increase 9% year on year.
This prediction is similar to Nokia’s statement at its Capital Markets Day event in Helsinki in December that the mobile device market will rise 10% next year compared to 2009.