News
Apple passes Nokia, now most profitable handset maker
By Charles Starrett
Senior Editor, iLounge
Published: Wednesday, November 11, 2009
News Category: iPhone
Apple has passed Nokia to become the world’s most profitable handset manufacturer, according to the latest research from Strategy Analytics. In the third quarter of 2009, Strategy Analytics estimates Apple’s operating profit for its iPhone handset division to be $1.6 billion, with Nokia reaching only $1.1 billion of operating profit over the same time period. Alex Spektor, Analyst at Strategy Analytics, said, “With strong volumes, high wholesale prices and tight cost controls, the PC vendor has successfully broken into the mobile phone market in just two years.” Neil Mawston, director of the Wireless Device Strategies service at Strategy Analytics, believes that Nokia must do better in the U.S. market if it wishes to recover, adding, “A successful fight on Apple’s high-profit home turf can simultaneously help to revitalize Nokia’s margins and to put a check on Apple’s surging growth.”
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1
Apple has re-defined the smart phone and these numbers do not begin to show the impact the iPhone is having the other manufacturers. I know that while I easily switched from the Razr to the Blackberry to the iPhone I would now never consider switching to a new phone unless it had apps that I use everyday like NeuroMobile and others. The app store has become a significant competitive advantage.
Posted by JA on November 11, 2009 at 5:14 PM (PDT)