Mobile phone sales could reach 500 million units
"The market is growing on two fronts – we’ve hit a sweet spot for replacement sales in mature markets while emerging markets such as Asia/Pacific and Eastern Europe continue to sign up new subscribers at a phenomenal pace," Wood said.
In the mature markets, color mobile terminals are a growing proportion of total sales, with the volume of camera phones also increasing. Gartner analysts said demand for low-cost terminals has also continued.
The North America market was driven by replacement sales, as users replaced their handsets in favor of smaller and, in many cases color, terminals.
The Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region accounted for 35.5 percent of the world s mobile phone sales, fueled by strong replacement buying in Western Europe. This was combined with strong sales in emerging markets such as Eastern Europe, in particular Russia, which saw sales reach 5 million units.
The Asia/Pacific region bounced back from SARS and was further buoyed by phenomenal growth in India.
