Jason Dunn
11-05-2003, 11:37 PM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,113289,tk,dn110503X,00.asp' target='_blank'>http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,113289,tk,dn110503X,00.asp</a><br /><br /></div>"First-time buyers in emerging markets helped drive the still-growing mobile phone market in the third quarter of this year, IDC said Wednesday. Markets like China, India, and Central Europe are seeing first-time sales growing, according to Andrew Brown, IDC program manager for mobile devices in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.<br /><br />"Elsewhere, it's mainly a replacement market, but some emerging markets are extremely significant," he said. Worldwide shipments of mobile phones rose 21.2 percent compared to the third quarter of last year, reaching 130.1 million units, IDC said."<br /><br />Mobile phone growth shows no sign of slowing down - it's amazing the sheer number of mobile phones out there. Nokia remains the big boy on the block with 35 percent of the world-wide market.