The worldwide smartphone market will slow to post its first single-digit growth setting on record. Researcher IDC predicts worldwide smartphone shipments will grow just 9.8 percent in 2015 to a total of 1.43 billion units.
According to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, the slower growth is expected to intensify slightly over the 2015-19 forecast period and is largely attributed to lower shipment forecasts for Windows Phone as well as “alternative platforms” (eg, phones running operating systems other than Android, iOS, and Windows Phone).
Despite all the effort Microsoft has put into the launch of Windows 10, IDC does not expect Microsoft’s share of the smartphone OS market to grow much over the coming years.
IDC is forecasting a year-over-year decline for Microsoft of -10.2 percent in 2015, followed by a further decline in 2016.
Meanwhile the market researcher has raised its 4Q15 iPhone numbers by 7.6 percent, based on continued consumer demand for the 6 and S6 models, as well as smooth supply chain foresight.
IOS market share of 15.8 percent is expected to remain around 14-15 percent annually, with clear spikes around product launches. Android’s market share is expected to grow slightly from 81 percent in 2015 to 82 percent over the forecast period.
China’s economic slowdown has dampened worldwide growth, due to the sheer size of the market. However, IDC reckons China has largely become a replacement market. As a result, shipment growth in China is only forecast to be in the low single digits.
