12/29/2016

Market Analysis
PRESS RELEASE- Bangladesh Handset Market 3Q 2016

Dec 29, 2016 Bangladesh Smartphone Market Grew 20% Annually

New Delhi, Mumbai, Hong Kong, Seoul, London, Buenos Aires – Dec 2016
Author: As per latest research from our Market Monitor program for Q3 2016 (Jul-
Sep), Bangladesh mobile phone market declined 4% YoY for the first time.
Shobhit Srivastava However, the smartphone sub-segment grew a strong 20% growth
Research Associate highlighting a rapid decline in feature phone demand (-10% YoY) during the
shobhit@counterpointresearch.com quarter. After a weak first quarter the sell-in picked up in second quarter,
+91 90 0083 1117
the growth continued in the third quarter.

Although Bangladesh mobile phone market is driven by feature phones,

Counterpoint’s smartphone percent share of the total shipments has been growing every
Analyst Contacts: quarter. The smartphones as a share of total mobile phones is estimated to
rise from 28% to almost 50% by the end of 2017.
Neil Shah
Research Director The rise of smartphones is fuelled by the launch of affordable 3G devices in
neil@counterpointresearch.com the sub-5000 BDT (or sub-65 USD) category mainly driven by local brands
+91 99 3021 8469 such as Symphony and Walton. Global brands Samsung with its J series
smartphones along with Huawei and Oppo are pushing the 4G LTE capable
Peter Richardson smartphones in sub 12000 BDT (sub-USD 150 segment), the next
Research Director battleground for differentiation in Bangladesh smartphone segment in
peter@counterpointresearch.com 2017. LTE capable smartphones now contribute to nearly one on four
+44 20 3239 6411 smartphones shipped in Bangladesh.

Tom Kang Bangladesh market is mainly dominated by local players with a combined
Research Director share of two-thirds of the total mobile phone market. Symphony Mobile
tom@counterpointresearch.com remained the single largest mobile phone brand followed by Winmax mobile
+82 10 2874 8133 and others. Smaller Chinese brands are feeling the pressure and continue to
lose market share with entry of global players such as Oppo and Xiaomi have
Jeff Fieldhack entered the smartphone market and local players are upping the ante with
Research Director low cost smartphones to sustain market share.
jeff@counterpointresearch.com
(858) 603-2703 Market Summary:

James Yan  Bangladesh mobile phone market grew 14% sequentially and
Research Director declined 4% Y-o-Y.
james@counterpointresearch.com
+86 158 1018 2576  Smartphone market grew a healthy 20% annually and saw 5%
sequential growth.

 Smartphone shipments contributed to 28% of the total mobile

phone shipments, signalling that more vendors have now greater
Follow Counterpoint Research mix of smartphones in their device portfolio.
analyst@counterpointresearch.com
 Symphony mobile leads by a distance in both overall mobile phone
and the fast-growing smartphone sub-segment with a market share
of 41% and 45% respectively. It continues to stay ahead of the
competition through its affordable offerings, effective localization

Counterpoint Technology Market Research 1 www.counterpointresearch.com

 12/29/2016

of software and services, expansive distribution and strong connect

with local users.
 Symphony V75, a US$59 retail 5” smartphone model was best-
selling model in Bangladesh during the quarter.

 Winmax mobile captured the second position in overall mobile

phones away from Samsung with a 32% QoQ growth driven mainly
by feature phones.

 Samsung has slipped to become the third largest mobile phone

brand in Bangladesh but still holds the second position in the fast-
growing smartphone market with a 15% market share.

 Samsung’s J series remains the driving factor for the South Korean
mobile phone giant in the country. Galaxy J2 was the best-selling
smartphone for Samsung during the quarter.

 Walton mobile, the fourth largest mobile phone player in

Bangladesh in Q3 launched new models in the quarter to maintain
its position in top five rankings in both feature as well as
smartphones.

 Huawei that entered the top 5 smartphone brands list first in 1Q

2016 continues to perform well in the segment, moving up into top
three spots in 3Q 2016 for the first time. The growth was mainly
driven by its affordable Y-series smartphones.

 Micromax India that is struggling in its home market continues to

also lose market share in Bangladesh and is out of the top 10 mobile
phone brands list in 3Q 2016.

 Bangladesh mobile phone maker Kingstar jumped to fifth spot in the

mobile phone segment, the company shipped only feature phones
during the quarter riding on the wave of high demand for feature
phone.

 Indian brand LAVA that entered the Bangladesh market in 2013,

remained strong and remained within top five smartphone brands
in the country, its smartphone market share now stands at 8%. The
low-cost IRIS 505 drove the growth for LAVA in 3Q 2016.

Counterpoint Technology Market Research 2 www.counterpointresearch.com

 12/29/2016

Exhibit 1: Bangladesh Top 10 Smartphone Models

Source: Counterpoint Research Market Monitor 3Q 2016 Country Report

Exhibit 2: Bangladesh Mobile Phone and Smartphone Shipments

Source: Counterpoint Research Market Monitor 3Q 2016 Report

Counterpoint Technology Market Research 3 www.counterpointresearch.com

 12/29/2016

The Market Monitor research is based on sell-in (shipments) estimates

based on vendor’s IR results, vendor polling triangulated with sell-through
(sales), supply chain checks and secondary research.

The comprehensive and in-depth 3Q 2016 Bangladesh Market Monitor is

available for subscribing clients.

For additional comments and inquiries please reach out to analyst (at)
counterpointresearch.com

Disclaimer
This research is for clients only. Our research is distributed primarily electronically and, in
some cases, in printed form. The research herein is based on source we believe to be reliable
but is not guaranteed by us and does not purport to be a complete statement or summary of
the available data. Any opinions expressed herein are statements of our judgement on this
date and are subject to change without notice.

Copyright, User Agreement and other general information

©2016 Counterpoint Technology Market Research. This research report is prepared for the
exclusive use of Counterpoint Technology Market Research clients and may not be
reproduced in whole or in part or in any form or manner to others outside your organization
without the express prior written consent of Counterpoint Technology Market Research.
Receipt and/or review of this document constitutes your agreement not to reproduce,
display, modify, distribute, transmit or disclose to others outside your organization the
contents, opinions, conclusions or information contained in the report. All trademarks
displayed in this report are owned by Counterpoint Technology Market Research and may
not be used without prior written consent.

Counterpoint Technology Market Research 4 www.counterpointresearch.com