Strong performances from Chinese brands with Huawei, OPPO and Vivo edging closer to leader Samsung and second-place Apple.
Huawei’s heavy investments on R&D, particularly within its chip
subsidiary HiSilicon, continue to pay off dividends in terms of
obtaining in-house application processors and the accumulation of IPs.
The Chinese brands therefore have the strength to expand into overseas
markets with products of comparable qualities to those from its
international competitors. At the same time, it is able to avoid legal
challenges to its technology patents.
Huawei currently uses in-house,
Kirin-series application processors for all its high-end devices and
continues to work with Qualcomm and MediaTek in the mid-range and
low-end device segments.
Huawei also has developed good relationships
with major telecom companies worldwide. After surpassing the 100 million
mark in 2015, Huawei’s production volume increased by 21.3% annually in
2016 to reach 131 million units, giving the brand a secured third-place
spot in the ranking.
OPPO and Vivo are two Chinese smartphone brands that burst into the
market in 2016 with successful sales strategies and higher product
specifications. Added together, OPPO and Vivo’s production volume for
last year amounted to 180 million units. Furthermore, OPPO and Vivo
respectively displaced Lenovo and Xiaomi to take the fourth and fifth
place in the worldwide ranking.
The return of Nokia-branded products in the smartphone market is
going to be one of the highly anticipated events in the early 2017. Last
May, Foxconn’s subsidiary FIH Mobile acquired the Nokia brand and its
mobile phone business from Microsoft and at the same time entered a
brand licensing and patent agreement with HMD Global Oy (HMD). Supported
by Foxconn’s vast resources, Nokia is expected to release a new device
at the start of this year, generating new buzz in the market.
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