Nokia's share of the global market for mobile phone handsets dropped sharply in the last quarter, a survey found today.
Industry leader Nokia's worldwide market share sank to 28.9 per cent in the first quarter of 2004 from 34.6 per cent in the year-ago period, market research group Gartner found.
The company's performance has been hit by poor designs, a lack of new models and a rocky relationship with mobile operators.
Gartner also noted that the overall handset market was growing strongly, with shipments rising by 34 per cent to 153 million units in the first quarter as consumers in emerging markets embraced mobile communications for the first time.
Global number two Motorola boosted its market share to 16.4 per cent from 14.7 per cent, while South Korea's Samsung Electronics rose to 12.5 per cent from 10.8 per cent.
The decline marks a sharp deterioration from the 38 per cent market share that Nokia itself claimed for 2003, and is a far cry from the 40 per cent target it has set.
Nokia admitted it had lost ground in the first quarter when it reported its quarterly results but estimated it still had a market share of 35 per cent.