Back in 2020, the online purchases of smartphones accounted for about 26 percent of all sales in the global market. This means that one in every four smartphones that were bought were purchased from online channels.
According to a Counterpoint Research report, the Coronavirus pandemic was a major factor that boosted the online sales in multiple countries. Key regions includes India that showcased the highest online share at 45 percent, along with UK with 39 percent and China arriving in at 34 percent. This implies that the share of online smartphone sales in 2020 rose by 6 percent over a year prior. For market size, it marked an increase of more than 10 percent.
Furthermore, this trend was also recorded in other regions as well, like the US and Europe. Emerging markets like Latin America also benefited from this trend. Notably, the US and India recorded highest ever online share in the second half of last year. While the market saw a sizeable growth in online sales, this trend is also expected to slow down for some time, with online sales in 2021 being similar to but slightly lower than last year.
Senior Analyst Sujeong Lim stated that “After the rapid growth in 2020, we expect 2021 to see some easing after the COVID-19 vaccination. However, it is expected to grow slightly every year from 2022 onwards, supported by growth in emerging markets and the middle-aged population becoming more accustomed to IT devices and internet use. But in the case of India, which currently has the highest online proportion, it may decrease to a certain level after 2022 due to the development of offline infrastructure such as multi-brand stores and large-scale retail stores. On the other hand, the future growth of the online market in SEA and MEA is noteworthy.”
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