Chinese tech-giant Huawei said its smartphone shipments have topped 100 million this year, breaking the record among domestic players and making it the world's third biggest mobile brand following Samsung and Apple.
The market share of Shenzhen-based Huawei Technologies Company has risen to 9 per cent globally and surpassed 15 per cent in China, leading for six consecutive months, data from a third-party market consulting agency showed.
"It's a stunning increase," He Gang, president of Huawei's mobile phone line said.
"Beginning in 2010 with a sales figure of no more than 3 million, Huawei took five years to reach 75 million and another year to achieve 100 million" state-run Xinhua news agency quoted him as saying.
He said Huawei has gained a firm foothold in the middle and high-end market over the past year, thanks to innovation and marketing.
Middle and high-end smartphones costing more than 2,000 yuan (USD 308) jumped to 33 per cent of Huawei's total shipments in the third quarter in China.
Huawei's Mate 7 alone has sold 7 million sets so far, making it one of the most popular smartphone models in China.
Sales of the new Mate 8 in the first two weeks were ten times that of Mate 7.
Mate 8 falls in the same price category as the Samsung Galaxy series and Apple's iPhone models.
"It's just a matter of time before we introduce high-end smartphones at a price above 5,000 yuan," he said.
International sales are expected to account for 40 per cent of the company's revenue by 2016.
According to a company report released today, Huawei invested 40.8 billion yuan in research and development in 2014, or 14.2 per cent of annual revenue.
Huawei has set up 16 overseas R&D institutions, including in Bangalore, CEO Ren Zhengfei said, adding his company has invested more than 190 billion yuan in technological innovation and holds a total of 76,687 patents.
