Samsung, Apple Cede Market Share to Lenovo, LG

Samsung and Apple are still the global smartphone leaders, according to a new report from IDC, but both firms lost a bit of market share to three firms in particular, including ZTE, Lenovo and LG.

Samsung's market share in Q2 2013 is estimated at 30.4 percent, down from 32.2 percent during the same quarter last year. Apple's fell from 16.6 percent to 13.1 percent, too. Meanwhile, ZTE's share increased from 4.1 percent to 4.2 percent, Lenovo jumped from a 3.1 percent market share to a 4.7 percent share and LG jumped from 3.7 percent to 5.1 percent.

"The smartphone market is still a rising tide that's lifting many ships," said Kevin Restivo, Senior Research Analyst with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. "Though Samsung and Apple are the dominant players, the market is as fragmented as ever. There is ample opportunity for smartphone vendors with differentiated offerings."

Despite decreases in market share, both Apple and Samsung increased their global shipments. Samsung shipped 43.9 percent more smartphones during Q2 2012 over Q2 2012, at 72.4 million total units. Apple shipped 31.2 million units, up 20 percent. LG and Samsung, meanwhile, shipped 12.1 million units and 11.3 million units, up a stunning 108.6 percent and 130.43 percent, respectively.

Samsung is still the top dog in the global mobile phone market with a 23.9 percent of all mobile device shipments, followed by Nokia with a 20.5 percent share (down 27 percent, by the way), Apple with a 7.2 percent share, LG (3.7 percent) and ZTE (3.5 percent).

According to a separate report published by Strategy Analytics recently, Samsung recently surpassed Apple as the world's most profitable phone maker.