Apple 'grabs 103.6pc of smartphone industry profits'

Forum 7 years ago

Apple 'grabs 103.6pc of smartphone industry profits'

Apple now accounts for more than 100 per cent of the profit generated by smartphone companies, according to research.

The iPhone giant's profits accounted for 103.6 per cent of those apportioned to the industry in the third quarter of 2016. This was possible because the majority of other smartphone makers lost money in the period, meaning the industry's profits as a whole were lower than Apple's.

This is despite Apple suffering from a slowdown in sales and reported its first fall in annual profits for the first time in 15 years at the end of October.

The analysis from BMO Capital Markets shows that despite its declining fortunes, Apple has seized an extra 13pc share of the profits compared with the same period last year.

One reason for the dramatic shift is Samsung's significant losses following the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, said Tim Long, the analyst with BMO Capital Markets who conducted the research.

Samsung still held second position in terms of smartphone operating profit share with 0.9pc.

The Korean electronics company fared better than Apple in terms of smartphone units sold, with 21.7pc of the market. By comparison, Apple had a 13.3pc and HTC followed with 9.7pc.

According to research from Strategy Analytics, Android devices accounted for 87.5pc of handsets sold during the period, against Apple's 12.1pc.

Fears that the smartphone market is drying up will have been somewhat allayed by the fact that global sales of the devices increased by 2.1pc compared with last year, with over 346m shipped.

The news comes as internet usage on smartphones overtook that on desktop and laptop computers for the first time this week.