IDC: Global Mobile Phone Sales Up 11.3% in Q4


After five consecutive quarters of slow mobile sales, the global mobile phone market grew 11.3% in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to a new report from market intelligence firm IDC.

IDC estimates that the worldwide mobile phone market will rebound in 2010. Vendors shipped 325.3 million units in the fourth quarter of 2009, compared to 292.4 million units in the fourth quarter of 2008.

“IDC believes that the converged mobile device market grew nearly 30% year over year, and that the market will continue to gain momentum as device selection increases and price decreases continue into 2010 and beyond,” said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst for IDC’s mobile devices technology and trends team, in a statement.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2009, Nokia gained the top spot with a market share of 39%. Shipments were 126.9 million, an increase of 12.2%, compared to 113.1 million units shipped in the same period last year. Samsung stood second in the list with 68.8 million units accounting for 21.1% market share. LG Electronics, Sony Ericsson, and Motorola came in behind Nokia and Samsung. (view the official report release here.)