Nokia No Longer a Top 5 Smartphone Vendor

Nokia’s transition away from its Symbian operating system to Microsoft’s Windows Phone OS has cost it dearly in the smartphone market. According to the latest metrics from IDC, the Finnish company is no longer a Top 5 smartphone vendor.

Nokia ranked as the third-largest smartphone manufacturer in IDC’s second-quarter survey. But in the research firm’s third-quarter report, it didn’t even place in the Top 5. And the company’s share losses have bolstered the gains of the smartphone market’s two juggernauts: Samsung and Apple.

During the third quarter, Samsung shipped 56.3 million smartphones globally, for a 31.3 percent share of the market. That’s up from 22.7 percent in the third quarter of last year. Meanwhile, Apple shipped 26.9 million smartphones to claim a 15 percent share, up from 13.8 percent a year ago.

Rounding out IDC’s smartphone Top 5: Research In Motion, ZTE and HTC, all three with relatively piddling market shares. RIM claimed third place, with a 4.3 percent market share, down from 9.6 percent last year. ZTE took fourth, with 4.2 percent. And HTC managed to nab fifth, with 4 percent.

Looking at the broader market, smartphone manufacturers shipped 179.7 million devices in the third quarter, up 45.3 percent from 123.7 million units in the same quarter last year. Meanwhile, the overall mobile phone market grew 2.4 percent year over year, with shipments of 444.5 million.