Sony Mobile managed to increase their presence in the high-end Android smartphone market in Taiwan, a recent report shows. Over the course of 2016, the company reportedly seized a total of 35% of the Taiwanese market for phones worth $475 or more. This is a marked improvement over their 2015 performance when they held 24% of the same market. This information was provided by Sony Mobile’s General Manager for Taiwan, Jonathan Lin. Lin also noted that the company is aiming to raise their share of the high-end Android phone market in Taiwan to 40% by the end of 2017. Provided Sony Mobile manage to achieve that goal, they will become the number one vendor of high-end Android smartphones in the country.
While the phone maker is reportedly planning to unveil two mid-range Android smartphones packing the Mediatek Helio P10 processor at the upcoming Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Lin’s words indicate that Sony Mobile also have something in mind for the high-end phone market in the near future. The company’s official did not state whether Sony Mobile are developing a new phone or a set of phones, or are simply preparing a marketing push for their more premium offerings like the Xperia XZ and the Xperia X Performance. Given Sony Mobile’s track record of serving the region with high-end products, their goal of having another 5% of the high-end market in hand by the end of this year seems relatively reasonable.
The competition that Sony Mobile is facing in Taiwan’s high-end Android phone market includes big names like Samsung who recently had a formidable share of the market, seizing over a quarter of it before the Galaxy Note 7 was recalled. Sony Mobile’s latest high-end options available in Taiwan include the Xperia XZ, Xperia X, and the Xperia X Performance. Before it officially launched, the Xperia XZ managed to sell out its preorder allotment in the country in just 45 minutes, which is a testament to Sony’s brand recognition in Taiwan. Provided these latest trends continue, it’s certainly possible that Sony Mobile will manage to seize 40% of the Taiwanese high-end Android phone market by the end of the year.