FRAMINGHAM, Mass., April 20 (UPI) -- The global mobile-phone market increased by 26 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period a year ago, a research group reported.
"The year-on-year increase indicates that consumer demand in mature markets is still high enough to drive replacement handset purchases. At the same time, continued growth in developing markets around the world is being fueled by both new subscriptions and replacement purchases," said Ramon Llamas, a research analyst of the mobile market group at IDC.
The Framingham, Mass.-based group said that Nokia continued to be the "undisputed leader of the worldwide mobile phone market," with more than 30 percent of the overall market. Motorola came in second, while Samsung "remained firmly in place as the number three worldwide vendor."
