AMMAN - Experts see an imminent growth in smartphone usage in Jordan, driven by rising competition in the market and the increasing number of users downloading applications.
The rise in the number of smartphone customers coupled with an increase in tablet users in the country is set to affect the sale of computers and laptops, according to industry representatives.
"With the introduction of Third Generation services in Jordan, there is a growing need for smartphones. Increase in Internet speeds and capacity, and rising demand for download applications are also encouraging more people to use smartphones," Orange Jordan CEO Nayla Khawam said in meeting with the press on Sunday.
"Prices of smartphones are constantly declining too, which is a crucial factor in encouraging more people to own such devices," she noted.
According to telecom sector representatives, about 25-30 per cent of mobiles owned by Jordanians are smartphones, which constitute some 19 per cent of mobile devices sold annually in Jordan.
During the first four months of this year, the Kingdom imported mobile devices worth JD60.2 million, a 26 per cent increase over the same period last year, according to official figures.
Khawam remarked that the projected increase in smartphone usage will also be triggered by a sharp rise in the number of Jordanians following social networking sites, as such high-end phones let users easily navigate through these websites.
Shaher Dasouki, head of the mobile phones department at Samsung Levant, agreed, adding smartphones respond to aspirations of consumers who need to download applications and advanced technologies.
"Tablets are expected to take a share of PC sales but that share will not be large. The usage of laptops and computers differs from tablets and smartphones," he said on Sunday, noting that although the use of tablets is on the rise, it does not mean they will replace PCs.
"No one can give up using PCs for smart phones," Khawam pointed out.
Worldwide smartphone sales are expected to reach 468 million units in 2011, a 57.7 per cent increase from 2010, according to Gartner Inc.
By the end of 2011, Android will move to become the most popular operating system worldwide and will build on its strength to account for 49 per cent of the smartphone market by 2012, according to the IT research and advisory company.
However, Gartner lowered its expectations for global PC market growth in 2011, saying consumers in developed markets were choosing tablets.
"We expect growing consumer enthusiasm for mobile PC alternatives, such as the iPad and other media tablets, to dramatically slow home mobile PC sales, especially in mature markets," said George Shiffler, research director at Gartner, according to a statement posted on its website.
© Jordan Times 2011
