Cell Phone Shipments Reach One Billion in 2006

Press Release - January 30, 2007

Mobile phone vendors shipped more than a billion handsets over the course of 2006, largely driven by strong sales during the holiday season, according to a report by technology researcher, IDC.

Total unit shipments for the year reached 1.02 billion, up 22.5% from the 833 million units sold in 2005. Emerging markets such as China, India, and Latin America, accounted for more than half of the year’s cell phone shipments.

“Mobile phones are seen as both a practical necessity and a status symbol in many emerging markets,” explained IDC industry analyst, Ramon Llamas in a statement.

In terms of market share, Nokia and Motorola managed to consolidate their positions of global leadership, but met with declining profit margins due to the rising popularity of low-cost, entry-level cell phones.