According to the latest research from our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global Android smartphone profits reached US$5 billion in total during the first quarter of 2013. Samsung dominated and captured an impressive 95 percent share of all Android smartphone profits.

We estimate the global Android smartphone industry generated total operating profits of US$5.3 billion during Q1 2013. The Android platform accounted for 43 percent share of the entire smartphone industry’s operating profits, which reached US$12.5 billion worldwide in the first quarter of this year.

We estimate Samsung’s Android smartphone shipments generated US$5.1 billion of operating profit worldwide in Q1 2013. Samsung captured a huge 95 percent share of all Android smartphone industry profits. An efficient supply chain, sleek products and crisp marketing have been among the main drivers of Samsung’s impressive profitability. LG followed in second place and took 3 percent global profit share. LG delivered a small profit during the quarter, but it currently lacks the volume scale needed to match Samsung’s outsized profits.

Samsung is, for now, the undisputed king of the global Android smartphone industry. We believe Samsung generates more revenue and profit from the Android platform than Google does. Samsung has strong market power and it may use this position to influence the future direction of the Android ecosystem. For example, Samsung could request first or exclusive updates of new software from Android before rival hardware vendors.

Exhibit 1: Global Android Smartphone Profit Share in Q1 2013 [1]

Our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service today published our latest report: North America Smartphone Vendor & OS Market Share by Country: Q1 2013. There has been shakeup in the US markets as it is slowly being dominated by Korean and Chinese vendors growing faster than market and earlier strong players such as BlackBerry, Motorola and HTC. Following is the summary of top five US smartphone vendors and their annual growth performance in terms of smartphone shipments. ZTE for the first time has surpassed Motorola to become the number 4 smartphone OEM in USA while Apple's growth has slowed significantly coming from a holiday season quarter.

The heat is on as the US mobile industry enters a very important quarter. Important product launches in Q2 2013 from Samsung Galaxy S4, HTC One, BlackBerry Q10 and Z10, LG Optimus G Pro to low-cost Nokia Lumia 521. On carriers' front, T-Mobile merging with MetroPCS plus giving up subsidies looking to shake up the industry in addition to Sprint contemplating over Softbank vs.Dish deals, intersting quarter indeed.

- Neil Shah

According to the latest research from our Wireless Smartphone Strategies, global smartphone shipments grew 36 percent annually to reach 210 million units in the first quarter of 2013. Samsung captured one-third of all smartphone volumes worldwide, while LG became the world’s third largest smartphone vendor for the first time ever.

Global smartphone shipments grew 36 percent annually from 153.8 million units in Q1 2012 to 209.5 million in Q1 2013. Growth was driven by surging demand for 4G LTE models in developed regions like North America and 3G models in emerging markets such as China

Samsung grew 56 percent annually and shipped a record 69.4 million smartphones worldwide, capturing an all-time-high 33 percent marketshare in Q1 2013. Samsung shipped almost two times more smartphones and grew nine times faster than Apple during the quarter. With the flagship Galaxy S4 model likely to be in high demand, provided there are no major component shortages, Samsung should continue to deliver strong smartphone volumes worldwide in the second quarter of the year. Apple shipped a lackluster 37.4 million iPhones worldwide in Q1 2013, up from 35.1 million a year earlier. Apple grew just 7 percent annually during Q1 2013, which was the iPhone’s lowest growth rate ever in its history. Apple’s premium-only strategy for the iPhone is approaching a natural ceiling and it will need to expand deeper into large markets like China or launch a lower-priced iPhone model for mass-market users.

LG was a star performer as its global shipments doubled year-over-year to 10.3 million units and it became the world’s third largest smartphone vendor for the first time ever in Q1 2013. An improved Optimus portfolio and expanded distribution have been the main causes of LG’s success. However, LG is still facing strong headwinds in the huge US and China markets and these remain key challenges for the Korean vendor this year.

Other findings from the research include:

Huawei delivered 5 percent share of the global smartphone market in Q1 2013, up from 3 percent a year earlier. Most of Huawei’s smartphone volumes are currently centered around China and Huawei will need to expand internationally if it wants to become an established global player in the future;
 

ZTE captured a record 4 percent share of the global smartphone market in Q1 2013. Like Huawei, ZTE’s growth has been coming largely from the China market and ZTE has a relatively modest presence abroad.

Exhibit 1: Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments and Market Share in Q1 2013  [1]

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, shipments of smartphones through operator-controled channels, like China Telecom, will rise sharply in 2013. The landscape for smartphone distribution is changing rapidly in China, the world's largest smartphone market by volume. Clients can view more analysis and forecasts in this published report.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, smartphone sales volumes will surge +56% in Africa Middle East this year. The rate of growth in Africa is almost two times higher than the global average. Growth will be driven by first-time buyers and 2G handset upgraders in major countries such as Nigeria, Egypt and Saudi Arabia. More details can be viewed by clients in this published report, which forecasts worldwide smartphone sales for 88 countries globally, including Brazil, Spain, Russia and others.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, smartphone sales volumes will surge +69% in India this year. The rate of growth in India is two times higher than the global average. Growth will be driven by a wave of low-cost Android and Microsoft models for prepaid users from companies like Samsung, Micromax and Nokia. More details can be viewed by clients in this published report, which forecasts worldwide smartphone sales for 88 countries globally, including India, China, US and others.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global smartphone sales will grow by +33% in 2013. Asia Pacific will remain the largest region, accounting for half of global smartphone sales in 2013. The two largest countries by far in 2013 will be the USA and China. This published report, available to clients, forecasts global smartphone sales, for 88 countries worldwide, from 2007 to 2017. Almost every major country worldwide is covered, including United States, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. This report can be used by operators, software developers, content developers, handset vendors, component makers, car manufacturers and other stakeholders to determine the size and growth rate of the huge global smartphone market.

Samsung unveiled its new flagship smartphone model, the Galaxy S4, at Radio City in New York, US, on March 14th, 2013. The S4 is an attractive model with advanced software and rich services. We expect the S4 to be a popular choice for consumers and carriers worldwide. However, Samsung rarely mentioned Google or Google services during its official presentations at the New York event, and we believe this marks a notable change in Samsung’s long-term smartphone strategy.The full report, Samsung Galaxy S4 Impresses, but Google is Sidelined, available to the clients of our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS), will give you the impressions and implications that we identified from the Galaxy S4 when it comes to the relations of Samsung and Google.

It’s unofficially the first day on Mobile World Congress 2013 and already mobile ecosystem players such as Mozilla have jumped in to announce their offerings. My colleagues are on the ground covering the event and we are proud to be the official GSMA research partner for MWC 2013.

Mozilla and its partners debuted their first commercial build of eagerly awaited initiative of Open Web Devices based on HTML5 based Firefox OS. The first wave of commercial Firefox OS devices will be launched in Brazil, Colombia, Hungary, Mexico, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia, Spain and Venezuela starting summer of 2013 targeting sub-US$150 retail price points leveraging HTML5 capabilities on a low cost hardware. In contrast, developed markets such as USA, UK will be getting Firefox OS phones next year in 2014. Mozilla has roped in more than 17 operators (e.g. Telefonica, Deutsche Telekom), four device OEMs (e.g. LG, Alcatel One Touch, ZTE and Huawei) and one chipset supplier (e.g.Qualcomm) as partners to build and launch Firefox OS phones on almost every continent on the planet.

Our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service forecasts Firefox OS will capture 1 percent (1%) share of global smartphone shipments in 2013. To expand beyond this niche status, Firefox OS will need to address at least three main challenges; they are modest brand awareness as an independent platform among smartphone consumers worldwide compared to likes of Google and Nokia, a limited initial retail presence in the influential developed markets such as United States market, and a relatively unproven ecosystem experience of supporting apps and services. However, Mozilla will still look to leverage to cross-promote these devices to its almost half a billion Firefox user base and popularity in key countries such as Poland, Brazil, Colombia and Serbia which will see initial wave of Firefox OS phones.

It's going to be an interesting 2013 with long tail of mobile OS platforms such as Firefox, Tizen, Sailfish, Ubuntu will challenge the strong walled garden platforms chipping away share leveraging key operator and device OEM partnerships.

According to our Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, global smartphone shipments grew +38% annually in Q4 2012, and +43% in FY 2012. Growth in the quarter was healthy but slowed a little as postpaid penetration matures. Samsung and Apple continue to dominate volumes due to their extensive retail presence. Huawei became the world's third largest smartphone player for the first time ever, highlighting the rise of Chinese brands. This published report -- available to download by clients --contains global smartphone shipments by the top 20 vendors by region by quarter from 2007 to 2012. Global smartphone shipments by vendor by operating system by quarter are also included in a pivot-table. The report is valuable for mobile stakeholders who want to size the huge market for smartphones and operating system marketshare by hardware vendor.