Chinese brands seize half of domestic smartphone market

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Readers outside China may not be so familiar with the names OPPO, Huawei and Vivo, but these brands are coming to dominate Chinese smartphone sales. The three took an almost 50-percent share of the market in 2016, according to a new report.

According to the data released by researchers IDC on Monday, the three companies occupied 16.8, 16.4 and 14.8 percent of the market respectively last year.

These brands grew up domestically and have now surpassed globally famous Samsung and Apple in their homeland. The most significant brand is OPPO, whose share grew 122.2 percent year on year to become the most popular smartphone brand in China.

An OPPO store in Nanjing, east China. /VCG Photo

Apple and Xiaomi were the fourth and fifth most popular brands, with 9.6 and 8.9 percent of market share.

According to IDC, China's smartphone market grew 9 percent last year, more than three times faster than the 2.5-percent growth rate of 2015. The total shipment volume reached 467.3 million devices.

A store dedicated to Xiaomi brand Mi in central China's Wuhan. /VCG Photo

What to expect this year‍

IDC also predicted the future of China's smartphone market in 2017.

It said the top brands will consolidate their dominance, with fewer shipments by lesser names. At the same time, the likes of OPPO, Huawei and Vivo are likely to pursue international expansion, especially in India.