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New Counterpoint research shows premium smartphones accounted for 55pc of the total market revenue last year, with Apple taking the biggest piece of the pie.
Apple has strengthened its dominance in the premium smartphone market, taking 75pc of the total sales last year.
This is according to new research by Counterpoint, which found that the global sales of premium smartphones – with a wholesale price of more than $600 – grew by 1pc in 2022. This is despite the global smartphone market shrinking by 12pc in the same period, due to macroeconomic difficulties.
These shifts in the market mean that premium smartphones sales represented 55pc of the global smartphone market’s revenue in 2022. Premium smartphones also captured more than 20pc of the smartphones sold last year.
Counterpoint claimed that “affluent consumers” are more immune to macroeconomic difficulties than other customers, which led to a growth in the premium market while entry and mid-tier segments declined.
Apple expands its dominance
In this growing premium market, Apple’s sales grew by 6pc in 2022, giving it 75pc of the premium market share.
Counterpoint said the tech giant benefitted from Huawei suffering a decline in China. But the research firm also said Apple suffered a supply disruption for the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max during the “peak holiday season” in 2022, reducing its premium smartphone sales.
Samsung had the second highest dominance in the premium smartphone market last year at 16pc but saw its sales drop by 5pc.
In January, Samsung reported a slump in its quarterly profits toward the end of 2022, which saw multiple divisions decline as customers adjusted their inventories.
Despite this, the company gave no hint that it would reduce spending and said its semiconductor sector will continue to address demand for “high-end products”. The company said it also plans to “expand its leadership” in the smartphone market with the Galaxy S23.
In terms of operating systems, Apple’s iOS has also expanded to 75pc of premium smartphones, while Android has fallen to 23pc, according to Counterpoint.
“However, Android could see a new wave of growth in 2023 as we expect more [original equipment manufacturers] to launch foldable devices in the premium segment this year,” said Counterpoint Research senior analyst Varun Mishra. “Existing foldable offerings in China are set to expand to markets outside the country.”
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