Bad news for the mobile development industry: the market analysts at IDC say that growth in worldwide smartphone sales will slow considerably this year. In 2014, smartphone shipments increased 27.6 percent, but in 2015, the firm expects only an 11.3 percent increase.
They blame the slowdown on the Chinese market, where smartphone shipments actually decreased in the first quarter of this year. “This has implications for Android because China has been a critical market for Android smartphone shipments in recent years, accounting for 36 percent of total volume in 2014, said Ryan Reith, Program Director with IDC?s Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker.
Currently the biggest growth markets for smartphones are India, Indonesia, the Middle East and South Africa. Some areas of South America have growth potential as well, although the market in Brazil is maturing.
