Entry-level Smartphones Chipping Away at the Feature Phone Market in Thailand, says IDC
According to IDC's Asia/Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker 2Q 2011, smartphone shipments in Thailand increased 19% QoQ in the second quarter of the year as entry-level smartphones, led by affordable Symbian and Android options, continue to cannibaliz
The slowdown in consumer spending, which started strong early this year, also impacted the feature phone market, leading to 8% decline in shipments of such phones during the period. Total mobile phone shipments in Thailand dropped by 4% QoQ during this period.
IDC notes a shift in buying preference from midrange mobile phones priced at US$100-350 toward either high-end phones in the US$350-600 price band or low-end phones below US$100. "Although the adoption of 3G services that were launched this year is driving purchase of high-end mobile phones, we are also seeing shipment growth of devices at less than US$100 as local brands aggressively expand their market to the countryside," says Nopparat Phromin, Market Analyst for Telecommunications Research at IDC Thailand.
Demand for both smartphones and feature phones are expected to climb again in the last quarter of the year with the launch of new products from mobile phone vendors. "The launch of commercial 3G services by True Move H and the expansion of trial coverage area of AIS and DTAC will further serve and ignite demand for data services, which is a major driver for smart phone growth especially for the data-hungry iOS and Android", adds Nopparat.
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