14 DAY TRIAL // Apple’s refreshed iPhone lineup helped the company post a substantial growth in the South Korean mobile market, as it jumped closer to rival Samsung right on its own turf.
A report from Business Korea and citing data offered by Strategy Analytics for the local market reveals that Samsung continues to be the number one smartphone maker domestically with Q4 sales of 2.4 million units and a market share of 46%. Apple sold 1.5 million units during the same quarter for a share of 28.3%.
But on the other hand, the gap between the two is closing, especially as a result of Apple launching new iPhones and buyers waiting for Samsung’s new Galaxy S9 launching February 25. The figures show that Samsung dropped 9 percent versus the same period the year before, while Apple increased 3.3 percent.
LG jumped from 8.3 percent to 15.7 percent market share in Q4 thanks to total sales of 800,000 units.
2017 performance
Overall, Samsung topped the charts in 2017 with 56.2% share, up from 55% in 2016, while Apple was the runner-up with 17.7%, an increase from 15.6%.
The analyst firm says the battery degradation issue hasn’t affected iPhone sales, despite it’s worth noting that Apple confirmed the performance throttling in late December close to the end of the quarter.
"Apple Store, which opened in Korea last month for the first time, is expected to have Apple's presence felt more strongly in the Korean market. We predict that LG Electronics will have an uphill battle, unless the company comes up with something innovative this year,” the firm said.
A bigger impact generated by the battery scandal could be recorded for the current quarter. Sales of Apple’s models are also expected to decline due to the weak performance of the iPhone X, coupled with the imminent launch of the Samsung Galaxy S9, which should drive more switches from iOS to Android.