Global LTE smartphone shipments will triple from 90.9 million units in 2012 to 275 million in 2013, yielding a record year for 4G technology, according to market research firm Strategy Analytics.
"Major countries driving LTE growth next year will include the USA, UK, Japan, China and South Korea," says senior analyst Neil Shah. "Multiple operators, such as Verizon Wireless, Everything Everywhere and NTT Docomo, are aggressively expanding their LTE networks. Key vendors leading the push into LTE smartphones will include Apple, Samsung, LG, Nokia, HTC, Motorola, Blackberry, Huawei, ZTE and Pantech. Popular LTE smartphone models will include Apple's iPhone 5 and Samsung's Galaxy S3," he adds.?
"It is clear that 2013 will be the year of 4G. LTE smartphone shipments worldwide will exceed a quarter-billion units for the first time," notes executive director Neil Mawston. "Multiple operators and multiple phone vendors will be launching dozens of LTE models across numerous countries worldwide. LTE has quickly become a high-growth, high-value market that no operator, service developer, component maker or device vendor can afford to ignore," he adds.
"The LTE smartphone market has become highly valuable and we believe it will eventually attract new entrants seeking a slice of the 4G pie, such as Amazon or Mozilla," forecasts analyst Linda Sui. "However, we caution possible new entrants like Amazon will not find it easy to break into the fiercely competitive LTE smartphone market, and they will need breakthrough products that are strongly differentiated in areas such as design, price or services."
