Worldwide mobile phone sales hit 308.9m
Worldwide mobile phone sales hit 308.9 million units in the third quarter of 2009, a 0.1% increase from the third quarter of 2008, according to research firm Gartner.
Gartner also found that smartphone sales surpassed 41 million units, a 12.8% increase from the same period last year.
Carolina Milanesi, research director at Gartner, said: “The third quarter of 2009 saw the announcement of many new mobile devices, including several Android smartphones ready for the holiday season in the fourth quarter, but hardware commoditisation and the growth in open platforms will make it harder for them to stand out.
““Meanwhile, the channel slowed its inventory-reduction efforts so while some sales volumes increased, average selling prices (ASPs) stagnated. We expect pressure on ASP to continue into 2010.”
Milanesi added: “Many devices will reach the market in time for Christmas, and mobile carriers will run incentives for consumers during the holidays. We expect sales of mobile devices in the fourth quarter of 2009 to show year-over-year growth.”
Recent research from The Nielsen Company found that browsing the web was the fastest growing activity on UK mobile phones between the second and third quarters of 2009.
The number of Britons using mobile internet hit 10.4 million in Q3 2009, up from 8.8 million in Q2 2009. This means over one-fifth of people in the UK with a mobile now use their handset to browse the web.
Elsewhere, a survey from Synovate, which questioned over 8,000 mobile phone owners across 11 markets, found that 31% of UK mobile users go online via their mobile phones.
MediaTel Group is hosting a seminar on the ‘Future of Mobile’ in London on Wednesday 9 December, with tickets just £99 if booked by 20 November.