Apple Rules Smartphone Market, Nokia Falls to Third Place

Apple may not have been in the lead before, but it looks like the smartphone market saw some leadership changes as far as market share is concerned, one of the major ones being Nokia's fall from first to third place.

Nokia may have held the top position as smartphone maker up to the first quarter of this year (2011), but it looks like the crown has passed on.

In fact, not just one, but two companies actually overcame it in terms of market share, pushing it from first to third place.

Samsung is one of the corporations that managed to outdo Nokia, bringing its smartphone shipments from the 3.6 million of last year's second quarter to 17.3 million.

This means that Samsung secured a share of 16.2%, while Nokia was left with 15.7% (it managed to ship 16.7 million smartphones).

Nonetheless, the real star was Apple, whose own phone levels reached a solid 20.3 million, according to IDC. This means a share of 19.1% of the total 106.5 million units shipped worldwide.

"The smartphone market crowned a new leader in 2Q11, and its name is Apple," said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst with IDC's Mobile Phone Technology and Trends team.

"Ever since the first iPhone launched in 2007, Apple has made market-setting strides in hardware, software, and channel development to grab mindshare and market share. Demand has been so strong that even models that have been out for one or two years are still being sought out. With an expected refresh later this year, volumes are set to reach higher levels."

The overall number of shipped smartphones shows that the overall segment grew substantially on-year, by 65.4% to be exact. Apple owes its success to both consumer and enterprise demand for the iPhone, though it remains to be seen if things continue to go this well.

"The smartphone market leadership change signifies the parity that comes with a fast-growing market such as smartphones," said Kevin Restivo, senior research analyst with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Phone Tracker. "There is no runaway leader in the market, which means there could easily be further Top 5 vendor changes to come."