The Canadian smartphone market is dominated by Samsung and Apple, but out of the two tech giants, Samsung has been losing market share in Canada while Apple gained 8.8% since 12 months ago, according to Counterpoint Research.
Samsung's smartphones accounted for 32% of the Canadian market in Q3 2019, down from 38.8% a year ago. Samsung is not the only OEM to have lost market share over this period, with both LG and Huawei also suffering losses.
Apple and Samsung hold nearly 90% of the Canadian market combined
Samsung and Apple are the biggest players in Canada by a long shot. Apple's market share in Q3 2019 stood at 56.5%, while Samsung accounted for 32% of the market. The third spot on the podium goes to LG with a mere 3.1% market share, down from 4.7% a year ago. Google managed to bump its market share up to 1.9% from 0.3% in Q3 2018, while Huawei's share has dropped from 4.6% to a dismal 1.6%.
Counterpoint Research reveals that affordable high-end and premium smartphones are more popular in Canada than low and mid-range alternatives. 75% of smartphone sales in Canada have been for smartphones with a price tag above $400, and the source claims that the iPhone 11 series has had a great contribution to Apple's success.
The Galaxy Fold is unlikely to make a difference for Samsung's Q4 tally
Samsung has one more ace up its sleeve, and that is the Galaxy Fold which is set to launch in Canada on December 6 for $2,600 CAD.
However, even if Canadians would be willing to buy the premium device in droves, it will launch in limited quantities much like in every other region, and it's probably not going to make much of a difference for Samsung's market share in Canada by the end of the fourth quarter.
