Framingham, Mass. – Apple (NASD: AAPL) has surpassed BlackBerry maker
Research in Motion (RIM) (NASD: RIMM) to become the No. 4 handset vendor in the world during
the third quarter, according to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.
Nokia (NYSE: NOK) still leads the market, followed by Samsung and LG; Apple knocked
SonyEricsson out of the top five.
Overall, the number of handsets shipped
during the third quarter totaled 340.5 million, up 14.6% from a year ago.
"The
entrance of Apple to the top 5 vendor ranking underscores the increased
importance of smartphones to the overall market. Moreover, the mobile phone
makers that are delivering popular smartphone models are among the fastest
growing firms," said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst with IDC’s
Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker.
"Vendors that aren’t developing a strong
portfolio of smartphones will be challenged to maintain and grow market share
in the future."
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/38sg824
(IDC)
