In their recent Country Market Share Report for Q4 2012, Counterpoint Research finds that Apple’s iPhone shipments have taken over the market share lead in Japan.
– Apple took 16% market share in the fourth quarter of 2012 and 15% for the full year of 2012, reaching the No. 1 spot for the first time in annual terms. Apple has been No. 1 in Japan since November of last year.
– Other foreign brands such as Samsung and LG also increased share in Q4 and theire combined share exceeded 50%. Counterpoint Research says that “Japan is no longer a Galapagos Island as global brands start to dominate.”
Traditional local champions Sharp and Fujitsu each took 14% of the market in 2012. Apple ended Sharp’s 6 year reign last year as it took the crown. Apple had already temporarily displaced Sharp in Q4 2011 but Sharp soon took back the No. 1 spot for the first half of 2012. For the full year of 2012 it was a close call between the three top players in Japan, but Apple rose to supremacy when all was said and done.
In 2012 both Softbank and KDDI heavily promoted the new iPhone 5 to challenge Docomo. This move sparked a battle of smartphones in which Docomo fought back with various new smartphone models, the majority of which were also foreign-branded. So, yet again, operator competition in Japan has catalyzed the iPhone’s success, but at the expense of Japanese firms. In Q4 2012, Apple, Samsung and LG took 50% of the handset market in Japan. Chinese Brands like Huawei saw sales jump three fold in a short period.
Counterpoint Research analysts comment that Japan was once considered to be like a Galapagos Island, an isolated terrain, in terms of mobile technology. It had its own unique digital cellular technology. It was far more advanced than any market in the world and it seemed nearly impossible for any foreign technology company to penetrate the market. Motorola had failed and Nokia had failed. The iPhone and the subsequent wave of Android smartphones have changed the situation now and it looks like the Japanese market is a market that can be transformed after all.
More more information, please contact info@counterpointresearch.com
Source: Counterpoint Research
MacDailyNews Take: You know, because iPhone 5 sales “haven’t been as strong as anticipated,” not to mention that “the Japanese hate the iPhone“.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Sarah” and “Dan K.” for the heads up.]
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Big in Japan, Tom Waits will be proud.
The Japanese will never accept Apple’s phones.
Then said this never would happen. That Japanese phones and networks were leagues ahead of the iPhone, bla-bla-bla-bla.
No. No. No! This can’t be right. The Japanese phone market is different. Apple’s iPhone won’t sell big there. The analysts said so.
Wow, apple is a very cruel company, it is taking away the only thing left to fandroids, the marketshare. That was the only thing they could be proud of, even that it is useless, but they can’t say they have the best customer satisfaction, they can’t say they have the best product, they can’t say the have the best money can but, they can’t say a lot of things, but right now they are holding on to market share, and apple is taking that away too even that long time ago it was taking all the profits from companies too.
Bad Apple, Bad Apple!
This article says that Apple is #1 overall for 2012 year, but in Q4 Samsung and/or LG became bigger: 16% for Apple, 50-16% = 34% is shared between Samsung and/or LG.
I noticed that too. The original article says “foreign brands like and [sic] Apple, Samsung and LG took 50%”, so presumably there were more that made up the 50%.
Now can you imagine all of the mobile based videos the Japanese can create? Imagine all of those neko faces and cat paws and peace signs with ducklips. Oh Japan, you are too kawaii for your own good. Check out this app to help you dominate the world of mobile video content.
http://www.ambivo.com