Samsung may not be having the best luck in some of its legal battles with Apple, but when it comes to global smartphone shipment numbers, the story is just a tad different. According to figures released by Strategy Analytics, Samsung has surpassed Apple in terms of global smartphone shipments and marketshare by a wide margin, claiming the title of world's top smartphone manufacturer in the process. The report from Strategy Analytics shows that Samsung managed to ship approximately 27.8 million smartphones in Q3 2011 compared to Apple's 17.1 million shipments. That's a year over year increase of over 20 million shipments for Samsung, and it's led the company to a global market share of around 23.8 percent.

When you look at the mobile phone market as a whole, Nokia was still the king of the hill in Q3 2011 with shipments of 106.6 million and a market share of 27.3 percent, although both of those figures are lower compared to Q3 2010. Moving on down the list we've got Samsung with 88 million shipments and 22.6 percent market share, LG with 21.1 million shipments and a 5.4 percent share, ZTE 18.5 million shipments and a 4.7 percent share, and Apple with 17.1 million phones shipped and a 4.4 percent market share.

Samsung's got a pretty healthy lead in the global smartphone shipment race, which Strategy Analytics attributes at least in part to the popularity of the Galaxy S II. Looking forward, it'll be interesting to see how these numbers look after the Q4 2011 dust has settled and we can add shipments of the Galaxy Nexus to Samsung's total and see how the iPhone 4S will affect Apple's total shipment figure. The full nitty gritty for Q3 2011 can be found in the pair of press releases below.

Strategy Analytics: Samsung Becomes World's Number One Smartphone Vendor in Q3 2011

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global smartphone shipments grew 44 percent annually to reach a record 117 million units in the third quarter of 2011. Samsung overtook Apple to claim top spot as the world’s number one smartphone vendor.

Alex Spektor, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said, “Global smartphone shipments grew 44 percent annually to reach a record 117 million units in Q3 2011. Samsung shipped 28 million smartphones and overtook Apple to become the world’s largest smartphone vendor by volume with 24 percent market share. Samsung’s rise has been driven by a blend of elegant hardware designs, popular Android services, memorable sub-brands and extensive global distribution. Samsung has demonstrated that it is possible, at least in the short term, to differentiate and grow by using the Android ecosystem.”

Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “After just one quarter in the top spot, Apple slipped behind Samsung to second position and captured 15 percent share. Apple’s global smartphone growth rate slowed to just 21 percent annually in Q3 2011, its lowest level for two years. We believe Apple’s growth during the third quarter was affected by consumers and operators awaiting the launch of the new iPhone 4S in the fourth quarter, volatile economic conditions in several key countries, and tougher competition from Samsung’s popular Galaxy S2 model.”

Tom Kang, Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “Nokia reached 14 percent global smartphone share in Q3 2011, more than halving from 33 percent in Q3 2010. The transition from Symbian to Microsoft as Nokia’s main smartphone platform has clearly been a very challenging process this year. The recent launch of the new Microsoft Lumia portfolio has helped to raise Nokia’s profile, and Nokia will be hoping the partnership with Microsoft can drive at least an L-shaped recovery in its global smartphone market share over the next few months.”

Exhibit 1: Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments and Market Share in Q3 2011 1               

Global Smartphone Vendor Shipments (Millions of Units)       Q3 '10       Q3 '11

Samsung                                                                                                  7.5                27.8

Apple                                                                                                        14.1              17.1

Nokia                                                                                                         26.5            16.8

Others                                                                                                  32.9         55.3

Total                                                                                                     81.0        117.0

Global Smartphone Vendor Marketshare %                              Q3 '10       Q3 '11

Samsung                                                                                                 9.3%           23.8%

Apple                                                                                                       17.4%         14.6%

Nokia                                                                                                       32.7% 14.4%

Others                                                                                                40.6%      47.3%

Total                                                                                                 100.0%     100.0%

Total Growth Year-over-Year %                                                         86.5% 44.4%

The full report, Samsung Becomes World’s No.1 Smartphone Vendor in Q3 2011, is published by the Strategy Analytics Wireless Smartphone Strategies (WSS) service, details of which can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/64cqrpr.

About Strategy Analytics:

Strategy Analytics is a global, independent research and consulting firm. The company is headquartered in Boston, USA, with offices in the UK, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and China. Visit www.strategyanalytics.com for more information.

Strategy Analytics: Global Handset Shipments Reach 390 Million Units in Q3 2011

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to the latest research from Strategy Analytics, global handset shipments grew 14 percent annually to reach 390 million units in the third quarter of 2011. China’s ZTE surpassed Apple to become the world’s fourth largest handset vendor, while Samsung’s marketshare reached record-high levels.

Alex Spektor, Senior Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said, “Despite ongoing economic volatility, global handset shipments grew a relatively healthy 14 percent annually to reach 390 million units in Q3 2011. ZTE was the star performer as it captured 5 percent market share and overtook Apple to become the world’s fourth largest handset vendor. ZTE’s growth is being driven by competitive pricing of entry-level models for feature phones and Android smartphones.”

Neil Mawston, Director at Strategy Analytics, added, “Nokia’s global handset shipments edged down 3 percent annually to 107 million units in Q3 2011. Nokia’s strong sales of its entry-level dual-SIM models in emerging markets were counterbalanced by weak demand for its high-end Symbian phones in developed regions. The recent Microsoft Lumia announcements have come at a good time to help Nokia’s stagnant smartphone volumes. Hot on Nokia’s heels, second-ranked Samsung continued to grow and reached an all-time-high marketshare of 23 percent, fuelled by robust shipments of its high-end Galaxy S2 superphone.”

Other findings from the research include:

LG shipped just 21 million handsets worldwide in Q3 2011, as its Optimus One line of affordable smartphones lost some market momentum;

Apple slipped to fifth place in our marketshare rankings, as the delayed launch of the refreshed iPhone 4S yielded the vendor’s weakest quarter of the year.

Exhibit 1: Global Handset Vendor Shipments and Market Share in Q3 2011

Global Handset Shipments (Millions of Units)     Q3 '10     Q3’11

Nokia                                                                               110.4         106.6

Samsung                                                                         71.4            88.0

LG                                                                                     28.4            21.1

ZTE                                                                                   14.0            18.5

Apple                                                                                14.1            17.1

Others                                                                           103.2     138.6

Total                                                                              341.5     389.9

Global Handset Vendor Marketshare %               Q3 '10     Q3’11

Nokia                                                                              32.3%       27.3%

Samsung                                                                        20.9%      22.6%

LG                                                                                     8.3%        5.4%

ZTE                                                                                   4.1%        4.7%

Apple                                                                                4.1%        4.4%

Others                                                                            30.2%   35.5%

Total                                                                               100.0%     100.0%           

Global Handset Shipments Growth Year-over-Year %     15.2%     14.2%

The full report, Global Handset Shipments Reach 390 Million Units in Q3 2011, is published by the Strategy Analytics Wireless Device Strategies (WDS) service, details of which can be found here: http://tinyurl.com/3tbnzb6.

About Strategy Analytics:

Strategy Analytics is a global, independent research and consulting firm. The company is headquartered in Boston, USA, with offices in the UK, France, Germany, Japan, South Korea and China. Visit www.strategyanalytics.com for more information.

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