According to foreign reports, market research firm IDC released a report on Thursday that the global wearable device market reached 33.9 million units in the fourth quarter of last year, up 17% year-on-year, but the market leader Fitbit's shipments fell by 23% year-on-year. %, just barely kept their leading position.
IDC pointed out in the report that while Fitbit's shipments fell 23% year-on-year, millet and Apple shipments increased by 96% and 13%, respectively. Xiaomi also surpassed Apple in the quarter to become the world's second largest wearable device manufacturer. According to the current development momentum, Xiaomi will soon surpass Fitbit and become the new leader in the global wearable device market.
IDC's report shows that Fitbit accounted for 19.2% of the global wearables market in the fourth quarter, down nearly 10% from 29% in the same period last year. At the same time, Xiaomi's market share reached 15.2%, an increase of 6.4 percentage points from 9.1% in the same period last year. Apple's market share remained stable, still around 14%.
Fitbit’s earnings report last month showed that the company’s performance during the holiday shopping season last year was very bad and led to a layoff of 110 people. Fitbit's revenue for the fourth quarter of last year was $573.8 million, down 19% year-on-year, below market expectations; and the company experienced its first quarterly loss since its listing in 2015. However, IDC's data shows that the global wearable device market achieved remarkable results in the fourth quarter of last year, and shipments hit a record high.
Fitbit is trying to dispel investors' concerns by talking about future plans, such as how to use the Pebble acquired in 2016 to further strengthen the smartwatch business. Fitbit also released new software features in January to impose its own platform. However, market analysts remain cautious, arguing that weak market demand and competitor product promotions may keep Fitbit's performance down for a longer period of time.
A few weeks before Fitbit’s earnings report, the company issued a performance warning on January 30, causing its share price to fall 16% on the day. Since the earnings report on February 22, Fitbit's share price has risen by about 5%. Fitbit shares fell $0.11 on the New York Stock Exchange's regular trading on Thursday, down 1.76% to close at $6.14. According to Thursday's closing price, Fitbit's market value is about 1.37 billion US dollars.
IDC believes that Fitbit's sluggish performance in the fourth quarter is mainly due to its high dependence on the rapidly saturated US fitness tracker market. According to data provided by financial information provider FactSet, about three-quarters of Fitbit's revenue comes from the US market. In the previous quarter, Fitbit's US business revenue contracted by 28%. FactSet expects that the Chinese market is currently Fitbit's second largest market, accounting for approximately 4% of the company's revenue; followed by the Japanese and German markets, which accounted for approximately 1.6% of the company's revenue. Fitbit's financial report shows that the company's revenue from the Asia Pacific region fell by 56% in the fourth quarter; revenue from the European region increased by 58%.
IDC also pointed out in the report that the rapid rise of Xiaomi in the wearable device market stems from the company's low-cost strategy to achieve good results in the Chinese market. Xiaomi has launched a health bracelet with advanced features such as heart rate monitors. Compared to competitors' products, the price of millet products is more acceptable to consumers.
At the same time, Apple Watch's Apple Watch shipments in the fourth quarter of last year hit a record high. IDC believes that the downgrade of the entry-level Watch Series 1 and the addition of Global Positioning System (GPS) to the Series 2 are the main reasons for Apple Watch's success in the holiday shopping season.
Throughout 2016, the global market for wearable devices shipped totaled 102.4 million units. (Compile / Ming Xuan)
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