70% of mobiles sold in Jan-Nov, 2010, were Nokias or Samsungs

NEW DELHI: Nokia and Samsung were the top picks for Indian consumers when it came to mobile phones in January-November, 2010, with the two handset-makers cornering almost 70 per cent of the market during the period in terms of total sales revenue.

Data released by global market research firm GfK Nielsen shows that Finland-based Nokia retained the top slot in Indian mobile phone buyers' minds in the January-November, 2010, period, with a market share of 49.2 per cent in terms of revenue. Korean electronics giant Samsung had a 20.5 per cent share, as per the GfK Nielsen data.

Among the other manufacturers, GfK Nielsen has pegged LG's market share at 5.3 per cent and Micromax's at 5 per cent, on the basis of their revenues.

Nokia continued to be the market leader in India and its latest offering, N-8 -- a touchscreen phone -- has boosted the brand's appeal.

Samsung also consolidated its share of the Indian mobile phones market in the year 2010, registering strong sales growth during the year on the back of strong demand for its Galaxy and WAVE series smartphones, besides its dual-sim phones.

The company strengthened its dual-sim portfolio considerably during the period and was the leader in the touchscreen segment, with a 36 per cent market share, as per GfK Nielsen.

Meanwhile, according to another research firm -- IDC -- Nokia had a 31.5 per cent share of the mobile handset market in India during the July-September, 2010, period in terms of the number of units shipped (sales).

A total of 155.9 million mobile phones were sold in India during the whole of 2010, as per estimates.

With the country's mobile subscriber base growing by as many as 20 million new customers every month, the mobile handset market in India is set to register faster growth than anywhere in the world in the near-term.

According to analysts, growing demand in the rural market and Tier-II and III cities will further fuel booming sales in the Indian mobile phone market.