Smartphone market suffers from global chip shortage

The smartphone market shrank by 6.7 percent in the third quarter of 2021. Due to the worldwide chip shortage, fewer devices are being delivered. Samsung closed this quarter with the best sales figures, but it does see its market share decline.

Smartphone market is shrinking

In the spring of 2021, smartphone sales seemed to have revived, as sales rose by double digits. Now it’s going in the other direction again, as sales fell by 6.7 percent in the third quarter of 2021, the researchers at IDC know. They see the worldwide chip shortage as an important reason why fewer smartphones have been sold.

In many sectors, the chip shortage as a result of the corona crisis has been a daily problem for some time. For example, cars are delivered with significant delays. Now the problem has also reached the smartphone industry with the most famous victim being the Galaxy S21 FE that is not forthcoming.

The decline in phone sales in the previous months was mainly a problem in Eastern European and Asian countries, while in Western Europe sales fell by 4.4 percent. It is expected that the consequences of the chip shortage will also be felt in the fourth quarter and in the course of 2022.

Apple big winner

Samsung managed to sell the most phones and it closed this quarter with a 20.8% market share, compared to 22.7% in 2020. You might think that Xiaomi is the main pursuer as the brand has been the most phone for a while. has sold. However, the Chinese brand only managed to expand its market share by 0.3%.

Apple, on the other hand, is the biggest winner, with a market share of 15.2% this quarter, compared to 11.7% a year earlier. The American company managed to sell almost 10 million iPhones more. The Top five is concluded by Vivo and OPPO respectively.

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