Vivo surpasses Oppo to lead China smartphone market

The battle for supremacy in China’s smartphone market is heating up, with the top spot changing hands in quick succession. Vivo has risen to the top spot in the world’s largest handset market for the first time, surpassing its nearest competitor Oppo due to a consumer-friendly product line-up, according Counterpoint’s China Smartphone Weekly Tracker.

Riding on the continued strong performance of its newly-launched budget model Y3 and S9, Vivo was able to jump ahead of Oppo during week 11 (March 8-14) and again in week 13.

Vivo was one of the first brands in the market to launch 5G devices, with the Nex 3 5G and iQOO Pro 5G in August 2019 and September 2019, respectively. Vivo has grown its 5G portfolio quickly to account for more than 76% of its sales in February 2021, from a mere 0.5% in August 2019, said the Counterpoint report.

According to the report, Vivo’s clear product positioning has paid off. Currently, Vivo’s portfolio includes the NEX, X, S, Y series, and sub-brand iQOO. The NEX and X series are Vivo’s flagship series focused on camera capabilities while the S and U series are focused on good value for money. Y is focused on budget customers while the iQOO is focused on online channels. In addition, Vivo has been putting more efforts into enhancing its camera capabilities through a strategic partnership with German optical expert Carl Zeiss.

Oppo had been aggressive in January and February this year and became the No.1 smartphone brand in China with the successful rebranding of Reno series and the strong momentum of A series in the mid-segment.

Ever since Huawei started to struggle due to US restrictions on the company, other Chinese smartphone manufacturers have been eager to take advantage. Commenting on the market dynamics, Senior Analyst Yang Wang, said, “Vivo and Oppo are adopting aggressive market and product strategies, and we expect to see the two brands continue to jostle for the top spot in 2021.”