No-brand vendors hit Nokia, smartphones next

Nokia and other established handset makers are quickly losing global market share to a push by Chinese no-brand vendors into emerging markets, research firm Gartner said.

Surging growth of no-brand manufacturers coupled with growing smartphone sales boosted third-quarter cellphone sales 35 percent, Gartner said on Wednesday. It raised its outlook for growth in 2010, which it forecast would top 30 percent.

No-brand manufacturers -- mostly small Chinese firms using chipsets from Mediatek or Spreadtrum Communications Inc -- have this year quickly expanded their reach outside China into Africa, India, Latin America and Russia.

Next these manufacturers -- who sell in total roughly as many phones as Nokia -- will focus on smartphones, using Mediatek's new Android chipset, Gartner said.

Google's Android software platform rose to No. 2 spot globally in the quarter, behind Nokia's Symbian and ahead of Apple and Research In Motion.

Handset vendors including Motorola Inc, HTC Corp and Samsung Electronics are using Android for their flagship smartphones, but the models using Google's software are also carrying lower prices to hit mass market.

No. 9 handset maker ZTE launched Android phone with Orange in the British market for less than 100 pounds.

Gartner said third-quarter sales of smartphones nearly doubled, in line with other researchers estimates.

Milanesi said full-year smartphone market growth would be "way over 50 percent".

Top-selling Nokia's third-quarter market share shrank to 28.2 percent from 36.7 percent a year ago, to its lowest level since 1999.

Gartner said sales of cellphones made by vendors outside the top 10 rose to 138 million handsets from 50 million a year ago.

"It is an issue more for Nokia than for others. Nokia is the one that owns the low-end of the market," said analyst Carolina Milanesi.

Nokia reported last month sales of its non-smartphones dropped 9 percent year-on-year in the past quarter, saying component shortages were the main reason.

In its key Indian market, Nokia's share dropped to 31 percent from 51 percent a year ago, Gartner said.

No. 2 and No. 3, Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, also saw their market share slip to 17.2 percent and 6.6 percent respectively.

Gartner estimates are different from other research firms as it tracks actual sales to consumers at retailers and operators, while others follow handset manufacturers output.