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Apple's Mobile Phone Market Share in Japan Rises Above 36% in Q1 2014

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Apple saw its share of the Japanese mobile phone market rise to 36.6% in the first quarter of 2014 amid surging sales on the country's largest carrier, NTT DoCoMo, reports Bloomberg. The company shipped 14.43 million phones in Japan in the past fiscal year and saw its market share increase 11.1% from 25.5% in the year-ago quarter.

iphone5s5c.png
Apple's market share in the country was followed by Sharp and Sony, which accounted for 13% and 12.3% of the market, respectively. Rival Samsung owned the sixth-biggest market share with 5.7%.

The debut of the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c on NTT DoCoMo last Fall marked the first time that Apple's phones were offered on the carrier. Citing the absence of the iPhone, a report last July pointed to a loss of 3.2 million users for NTT DoCoMo over the last four and a half years. DoCoMo's troubles continued in September with a record loss of 66,800 subscribers, which was attributed to a lack of iPhone 5s stock.

Since then however, DoCoMo has enjoyed surging sales of the iPhone, as Apple's device now accounts for more than 40% of phone sales on the network. Last October, the iPhone 5s and iPhone 5c also accounted for 76% of smartphone sales in Japan, marking a record high.

All three major Japanese carriers including DoCoMo, SoftBank, and KDDI have been offering the iPhone 5s free on contract through special offers since its launch in September.

Article Link: Apple's Mobile Phone Market Share in Japan Rises Above 36% in Q1 2014
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/05/14/apple-smartphone-market-share-japan-36/
TantalizedMind

TantalizedMind

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That's A LOT of iPhones. Android not too popular over there? I love iOS but it seems the Japanese love it more!
 
szw-mapple fan

szw-mapple fan

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Dear Macrumors,

Please change DoCoMo to Docomo in future stories, they ditched the old logo a few years ago.

;)
 
mw360

mw360

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25.5% to 36.6% isn't an 11.1% increase. It's a 43.5% increase or an 11.1 percentage point increase.
 
C

cdmoore74

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Jun 24, 2010
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Japan? That's it? No other country? Maybe they have smaller hands and pockets then the rest of planet earth. Their going to complain big time when iPhone 6 comes out.
 
T

Thares

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I am wondering why this is. Is the society in Japan more attracted to premium products? I'm really curious.
 
Reason077

Reason077

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Japanese consumers have taste and class, and aren't suckered by Samsung's gimmicks. If only the rest of the world were as smart as the Japanese!
 
Ledgem

Ledgem

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TantalizedMind said:
That's A LOT of iPhones. Android not too popular over there? I love iOS but it seems the Japanese love it more!
Click to expand...
I don't know that it's a reflection of iOS vs. Android. The iPhone is one of the few premium smartphones that have remained fairly small. Back when Microsoft first got into the gaming business the Xbox had a hard time gaining traction in Japan, and the size of the controller (unusually large and bulky compared to the Sony and Nintendo controllers) was considered to be part of the reason. Microsoft ended up creating a smaller version of the controller for Japan. If the iPhone really is due to a size increase, it will be interesting to see what happens to the sales in Japan.
 
P

proline

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Ledgem said:
I don't know that it's a reflection of iOS vs. Android. The iPhone is one of the few premium smartphones that have remained fairly small. Back when Microsoft first got into the gaming business the Xbox had a hard time gaining traction in Japan, and the size of the controller (unusually large and bulky compared to the Sony and Nintendo controllers) was considered to be part of the reason. Microsoft ended up creating a smaller version of the controller for Japan. If the iPhone really is due to a size increase, it will be interesting to see what happens to the sales in Japan.
Click to expand...
Rare intelligent analysis. People actually love small, portable mobile devices. That's why the #1 phone in the world, by far, is a 4" device. If Apple is smart, they will continue to make a 4" iPhone that has all the latest features. As for Android OEMs, they have proven they cannot compete with Apple at the same size, which means that if Apple makes a 5" phone they will be forced to stay in the 6"+ niche of the market.
 
szw-mapple fan

szw-mapple fan

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M-O said:
probably because of scumbag korean companies like samsung and hyundai, who made profit by selling sony and toyota knockoffs.
Click to expand...

Not really. Japan has showed an elitist attitude to surrounding countries since before the second world war. The hate is really sad to see.
 
B4U

B4U

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cdmoore74 said:
Japan? That's it? No other country? Maybe they have smaller hands and pockets then the rest of planet earth. Their going to complain big time when iPhone 6 comes out.
Click to expand...

"than"
"They're"

Before going on some racial profiling, please try to use proper language first.
 
2

2457282

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TantalizedMind said:
That's A LOT of iPhones. Android not too popular over there? I love iOS but it seems the Japanese love it more!
Click to expand...

Actually, this makes total sense to me. I have stated on other threads that if all else is equal, iOS and the iPhone will. However, in most places it is not equal and Apple products cost the consumer more than alternative Android products. In Japan, where they are giving the iPhones away free (on contract, of course) people are choosing the better phone. In countries where folks have to buy their phones up front, a $200 Android phone is chosen over a $700 iPhone. This is why I hope that Apple is able to bring the cost down on the c line so that they can make headway in countries that don't subsidize the phone through the contract price.
 
kdarling

kdarling

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M-O said:
probably because of scumbag korean companies like samsung and hyundai, who made profit by selling sony and toyota knockoffs.
Click to expand...

That's like saying Germany and Israel don't like each other over pots and pans.

Korea and Japan have had a contentious relationship for thousands of years. Today's feelings are often affected by conflicting geographic claims, and by memories of harsh Japanese colonial rule over Korea from the first part of the 1900s to the end of World War II, and whether or not Japanese schools should teach about it.
 
MacbookSwitcher

MacbookSwitcher

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Apple has a huge advantage in Japan due to the fact that the Japanese generally will not buy Korean products (though there are limited exceptions). This gives Apple a natural leg up over LG and Samsung in Japan, which will last for some time.
 
C

cleirac

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May 7, 2014
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Reason077 said:
Japanese consumers have taste and class, and aren't suckered by Samsung's gimmicks. If only the rest of the world were as smart as the Japanese!
Click to expand...

This.

They know Samsung's infringements aka copying histories on Japanese highly respected electronics companies.
 
kdarling

kdarling

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cleirac said:
They know Samsung's infringements aka copying histories on Japanese highly respected electronics companies.
Click to expand...

Unlikely. If you're old enough, you'll remember that Japan itself was a big design copier for decades. It's not seen as evil.

Moreover, the Japanese still buy a good number of Samsung smartphones. Nationwide, they're in fourth place behind Sony and Sharp, Japanese companies which each also sell less than Apple.

A big factor for the iPhone success is that it is available for free from the major carriers. The iPhone struggled for acceptance in Japan before that first happened.

It also helps that more Japanese oriented iOS apps are available now than a few years ago.
 
MacbookSwitcher

MacbookSwitcher

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kdarling said:
Moreover, the Japanese still buy a good number of Samsung smartphones. Nationwide, they're in fourth place behind Sony and Sharp, Japanese companies which each also sell less than Apple.
Click to expand...

Samsung's market share is steadily decreasing in Japan, accounting for only 7% of the market as of Q4 2013 (down from 17% in Q4 2012), which is remarkably low considering Samsung's success around the world. LG's numbers are too low to even count.

kdarling said:
A big factor for the iPhone success is that it is available for free from the major carriers. The iPhone struggled for acceptance in Japan before that first happened.
Click to expand...

I was in Japan when the iPhone came out (and still am now), and the iPhone has never struggled here. There were long lines and sellouts from day one. It has always bee successful in Japan.

There are also many Android phones available for "free" from the major carriers here as well.
 
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