The component crisis has hit the smartphone market hard. According to a report by Canalys, one of the leading technology market analysis companies, in the third quarter of 2021, the smartphone sector registered a contraction of 6%.
As can be seen in the image, the ranking of major sellers has remained more or less constant. Samsung remains in first place, while Apple has managed to overtake Xiaomi thanks to the launch of the iPhone 13, from 12% market share to 15%. But the lack of components will lead to a decrease in the number of available devices and an increase in prices. These are the words of Ben Stanton, Canalys chief analyst.
The chip famine has arrived. The smartphone industry tries to maximize the production of the devices as much as possible. On the supply side, chip makers have raised prices to discourage excessive orders in an effort to close the supply-demand gap. Nevertheless, the shortages will persist at least until the end of 2022. For this reason, coupled with the high cost of worldwide shipping, smartphone brands have been reluctant to increase their retail prices.
The crisis affects not only the big brands, but also local retailers. In fact, uncertain production forces suppliers to reduce the amount of devices shipped at the last minute. Many sales channels have a serious shortage of products on the shelves on the eve of events like Black Friday.
Canalys warns that, at least for this year, you should expect much less aggressive discounts during the holiday periods. One possible solution from smartphone manufacturers to motivate higher prices is to include other accessories, such as wearables, in the sale in addition to the phone.