By Star Chang, posted Nov 22, 2012 at 4:38 AM, 924 views,

Lenovo to Beat Samsung Become Top Smartphone Player in China Next Year

Lenovo which is currently No. 2 smartphone vendor in its home market will take advantage of branding, distribution channel and price positioning to become top player in 2013. The Chinese PC maker was the only local smartphone player able to compete with top global brands in China. The company’s smartphone is targeted at the mid-to-lower end market where global brands are less competitive. Previously, Lenovo bumped long-time top PC vendor, Hewlett-Packard, off its number one position …

Mobile Internet devices are part of Lenovo’s “PC plus” strategy. The company sees PCs becoming the heart of users’ digital life, supported by secondary devices such as smartphones and tablets as well as smart TVs. Chinese smartphone manufacturers are driving growth in the domestic market, resulting in China becoming the top single country market with 158 million global smartphone shipments in the second quarter of 2012. Chinese companies have worked hard to greatly improve their brand resonance among consumers and to expand and enhance their relationships with local telecoms operators. Following its mobile phone success in China, Lenovo has recently expanded its smartphone market overseas to India.

According to the prediction from Gartner research firm, Lenovo’s market share in smartphone increased from 1.7 percent in the third quarter of 2011 to 14.8 percent in the same quarter in 2012. During the quarter, it became the second largest smartphone player in China, behind Samsung which had 16.7 percent market share. Apple had only 6.9 percent market share. Due to its household brand recognition, nationwide distribution, strong portfolio and reasonable pricing, Lenovo has several advantages over global and local brands. Lenovo may become the number one smartphone manufacturer in China next year, ending Samsung’s reign.

SOURCE: Gartner