China is the world's largest smartphone market, good for almost a third of phones sold last year. However, growth in China is expected to slow to just 1.2 percent this year, from 19.7 percent in 2014, as the market matures in line with the pattern seen in many Western countries. China is expected to still remain the largest market for smartphone volumes throughout IDC's forecast period, but its share will fall to an estimated 23.1 percent in 2019 as other markets like India continue to expand.
IDC's latest forecast also predicts that Google's Android will remain the dominant operating system, with an over 80 percent market share through 2019. As the markets with the biggest smartphone growth opportunity are extremely price sensitive, Apple will find it difficult to challenge Android's share, the market researcher said. Android shipments globally are expected to grow from 1.06 billion in 2014 to 1.54 billion in 2019, while iOS shipments will grow from 192.7 million in 2014 to 269.6 million in 2019. IDC's view that Microsoft/Windows Phone will remain a marginal challenger at best has not changed.
