Samsung had a record-breaking year but it wasn't entirely because of its mobile business. The business continues to face tough challenges in key challenges. US research firm Strategy Analytics now predicts that these challenges might cause Samsung's smartphone growth to stall in the coming year.
It predicts that Samsung's smartphone sales are going to see the slowest growth in 2018 among the top five global smartphone vendors. Samsung's overall market share is expected to dip below 20 percent.
Samsung's growth woes
Strategy Analytics expects Samsung to ship over 319 million smartphones in 2017 which would give it a global market share of 20.5 percent. It expects shipments to fall to 315 million units next year, accounting for a 19.2 percent market share.
The prediction is based on stronger competition from Apple's flagship smartphones while China-based vendors will continue to put pressure on Samsung in the low-end and mid-range segments.
If the prediction is true, it will be the first time that Samsung's annual smartphone shipments register a decline since the Galaxy S series was first launched almost a decade ago. Last year's debacle with the Galaxy Note 7 is an exception, though.
The other top vendors – Apple, Huawei, Oppo and Xiaomi – are all expected to either retain or grow their market shares. Samsung's mobile division will certainly have to push the envelope if it wants to prevent this from happening.
The company will be counting on the Galaxy S9 for sure. It will also need to up its game in the affordable segment of the market to better compete against its Chinese rivals.
