Analysts: US smartphone market slumped in second quarter, iPhone SE became a bright spot

      On the morning of July 21, a report released today by data agency Counterpoint Research showed that in the second quarter of 2020, sales of all smartphones in the US market fell 25% year-on-year.

　　Looking at the performance of each company, Samsung's sales fell by 10% in the second quarter, followed by Alcatel, which fell by 11%. According to the data, Apple's sales fell by 23% year-on-year. LG's sales fell by 35%, followed by OnePlus (60%), Motorola (62%) and ZTE (68%).

　　Due to factors such as home quarantine, the share of online sales channels increased from 14% last year to 31%. This is why Samsung and Apple's sales performance outperformed the overall market, thanks to a higher proportion of online sales. Considering the sluggish market, Alcatel also performed well, benefiting from government-subsidized plans and sales in prepaid channels.

　　Regarding the launch of Samsung Galaxy S20, a person related to Counterpoint Research said: "The timing of the launch of the S20 series is unfortunate. Most stores are closed. This has led to an estimated 38% decrease in activations for the Galaxy S20 series compared to last year's S10 series. Many people who might have bought a Galaxy S20 will be pushed to the third quarter, and some of these sales opportunities may be lost."

Major mobile phone brands in the US market experienced varying degrees of decline in the second quarter.

　　Apple's iPhone sales in the United States fell 23% in the second quarter of 2020 compared to the second quarter of 2019. Despite the decline in sales, the iPhone SE became a new bright spot with sales exceeding expectations. The new 2020 iPhone SE released in April also helped Apple boost sales throughout the quarter.

　　Price is a key factor, with the iPhone SE starting at $399 and selling well in postpaid retail channels and carrier channels such as prepaid. More than 30% of iPhone SE buyers upgraded from iPhone 6s or older, and more than 26% of iPhone SE users came from Android devices. Counterpoint said this is higher than the normal Android to iOS conversion rate.

　　Apple's sales grew throughout the quarter, helped in particular by the iPhone SE.

　　(Because of the epidemic) This product did not have Apple's big launch event, nor was it held at the Steve Jobs Theater, or accompanied by a large number of TV ads. However, Counterpoint believes that the device is very successful and sales in both postpaid and prepaid channels have exceeded expectations. There is also a timing factor. Since the release of the iPhone SE, carrier stores and national retail stores have reopened. Some channels have used large promotions to attract shoppers back to stores. This is especially true in sales channels such as Walmart, T-Mobile's Metro, and Boost.

　　At the same time, Counterpoint also believes that it is "unlikely" for Apple's iPhone SE to clash with sales of the 2020 iPhone 12 models, because iPhone SE buyers are "more pragmatic" about price, pay less attention to 5G networks, and the smaller screen is not a problem for them.

　　According to Counterpoint Research, mid-March to mid-April saw the weakest sales for the entire smartphone market, but things started to pick up in the second half of April after consumers got excited and retail stores began to reopen. Smartphone sales grew week-on-week from May to the end of June, and sales in June 2020 were ultimately stronger than sales in June last year.