BlackBerry and iPhone demand rising ever higher

Ringing up sales: more than 180 million smartphones were sold last year

11 April 2012

Soaring demand for smartphones such as Apple's iPhone and Research In Motion's BlackBerry means mobile phone companies will report accelerating market growth in this month's first-quarter earning season.

More than 180 million smartphones were sold last year, with Nokia, RIM and Apple sharing 60% of the market, and demand is accelerating, according to research from Parks Associates.

Analysts believe sales growth for mobile firms will hit 13% in the first quarter compared with last year.

At Nokia, the world's number one mobile manufacturer, analysts expect growing demand for cheaper smartphones will give it a greater market share when it posts a first-quarter update next week.

Apple is expected to sell about 7.5 million iPhones in the quarter, down from the end of last year, when demand for the model as a Christmas present helped its figures soar, but doubling sales from a year ago.

"We are obviously seeing very, very strong growth in smartphones. We are seeing a real move from just high-end through to the mid-range," said Alistair Hill, an analyst from ComScore.

Yesterday it was reported that smartphone firm Palm hired Goldman Sachs and Qatalyst Partners to assess a potential sale.