Feature phones segment for the first time ever, recorded negative growth (-0.8 per cent) in the Indian mobile handsets market during July-September, a report said on Tuesday.

 

According to the CyberMedia Research’s (CMR) India Mobile Handsets Market Review, the country imported 51.1 million units of feature phones during the July-September quarter, as compared to around 52.2 million units in same period last year.

 

“This means vendors can expect to see large opportunities in the upgrades market where many featurephone users will upgrade to a smartphone,” Faisal Kawoosa, Lead Analyst, CMR Telecoms Practice said.

 

It may also so happen that new smartphone purchases register lower volumes vis-à-vis upgrades. But this phenomenon may be a few quarters away, he said.

 

“So there is going to be an opportunity as well as competition in the entry-to mid-level smartphone segments, which is where the volumes would remain for a while,” he added.

 

According to the report, the overall mobile phones market reached 62.9 million handsets in the third quarter (July-September), out of which 11.1 million were smartphones.

 

It has grown by around 11 per cent year-on-year (around 57 million units in July-September 2012), said the CMR’s latest report.

 

While Nokia continued to be number one player with a market share of 19 per cent, Samsung and Micromax were ranked second and third with 12 per cent and 10.8 per cent respectively.

 

In the smartphone segment, Samsung held its number one position with 34 per cent market share. Micromax and Karbonn followed it by 19.7 per cent and 9.5 per cent market shares respectively.

 

ronendrasingh.s@thehindu.co.in

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