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Chinese smartphone company Transsion, whose brands are Tecno, Itel and Infinix, has steadily become the world's fifth largest smartphone maker, according to the latest market reports from Canalys (via Android Central ), IDC and Omdia.
Despite being one of the few smartphone brands to achieve growth in the third quarter of this year, many in Europe and North America have not heard of Transsion as it focuses on markets in Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, Asia and Oceania. . . Transsion has a particularly strong base in Africa, where it sells more phones than Samsung and Xiaomi, according to IDC. While this indicates that Transsion is focusing on affordable smartphones, its Tecno brand recently launched its first foldable device.
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The exact quarter in which Transsion is in the top five worldwide varies depending on which reports you trust the most. IDC and Omdia predict Transsion will overtake Vivo in the second quarter of this year, while Canalys predicts it will happen in the third quarter. But the three agree that it is now in the top five, behind traditional heavyweights like Samsung, Apple, Xiaomi and Oppo.
However, a recent report by Counterpoint Research disagrees and puts Vivo in fifth place. Transsion, however, said it was one of the few brands to show year-over-year growth in the third quarter. Honor and Huawei also gained, with the latter benefiting from the launch of the Mate 60 Pro with a processor that was described as a sign of progress in China's domestic chipmaking capabilities despite US sanctions.
Transsion's growth appears to be due to a focus on emerging markets, where demand has been relatively strong this year compared to more developed markets. Counterpoint notes that the Middle East and Africa was the only region to see year-over-year growth in smartphones in the third quarter of this year, and says Transsion is benefiting from the rebound. Meanwhile, TransUnion (along with Xiaomi) "has quickly benefited from the recovery in emerging markets thanks to competitive products and channels," Canalys analyst Amber Liu says.
The big question is whether the transition phase can maintain this position or whether 2023 will be an exception. Counterpoint notes that 2023 is expected to be the worst year of the decade for smartphone shipments, mainly because people in developed markets have fewer options to replace their phones. If this trend continues, it could create huge opportunities for manufacturers targeting emerging markets.
