Global Mobile Phone Revenues Remain at Downward Trend

Global Mobile Phone Revenues Remain at Downward Trend

The mobile phone industry continues to suffer the downside of recession. In Q1 of this year, mobile phone sales dropped by almost 10 percent from that of the same period last year, Gartner says.
Mobile phones shipped last quarter managed to reach 269.1 million; however, this is 8.6 percent lower than the sales recorded in Q1 of 2008.

Meanwhile, smartphones saw a significant increase in sales, earning 12.7 percent boost during the quarter. According to research director Carolina Milanesi, the overall drop in sales is the worst the industry has ever seen since 2001.

"This was also the first time the market contracted year over year during the first quarter, a period traditionally helped by strong seasonality in the Asia/Pacific market," Milanesi said.

Among the mobile phone companies, Nokia remained at the top spot despite its 2.9 decrease in year on year shares. Samsung is trailing behind at second place, garnering an increased market share of 19.1 percent.