iPhone in China Market: China Smartphone Market Continues to Grow, Apple In Position to Benefit

iPhone in China Market: In the past, we have discussed the importance of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) continuing to establish itself in the China market. Along with this, CEO Tim Cook has been spending quite a bit of time in the country. Earlier this month, for example, he visited with a reseller while also meeting with officials from China Mobile.

In 2012, the number of mobile 3G subscribers in China increased by roughly 83 percent. With an increase like this, it is easy to see why Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is so excited about becoming an even bigger player in this market.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) Press Info

Here is a brief rundown of the statistics from a recent AppleInsider piece:

“At the end of 2012, China had 233 million 3G subscribers, analyst Brian White of Topeka Capital Markets noted on Tuesday. The number of subscribers was up from 127.5 million at the end of 2011.”

As you can see, this is quite an increase year-over-year. Even though most realized that the smartphone market in China was growing by leaps and bounds, many probably didn’t understand that things were progressing quite this fast.

For an even better understanding of how quickly the market is growing, here is more statistical information from the same article:

“China gained 11.8 million 3G subscribers in the month of December in 2012 alone. 3G subscribers now represent 21 percent of China’s wireless subscribers, up from a 13.1 percent share a year prior.”

Even though these numbers appear to be large (and they are), White goes on to explain that China is still behind many other areas in terms of 3G use. This is not a bad thing, however. Here is a further explanation: