Nokia rules GSM handset market with 79% share

Finnish handset major Nokia has retained the top slot in Indian GSM market with 79% share, while US giant Motorola has more than doubled its share to 7% this year, according to a study.

Motorola has been able to significantly improve its share to 7% this year from 3% in 2005, according to the latest annual TNS CellTrack 2006 study.

It said the US company's gain was possibly the loss of South Korean handset maker Samsung, whose market share dropped to 4% in 2006 from 6% a year ago.

In the CDMA market, LG has consolidated its position as the market leader with 49% market share this year against 43% in 2005, the study said.

While Nokia managed to retain its share in CDMA handsets, Samsung and Motorola lost market share from 17% to 8% and 12% to 4% respectively.

According to the study, the TRIM index for the industry, which measures strength of 'subscriber-service provider relationship', increased to 82 this year against 79 in 2005.

Bharti Airtel has retained its number one position among national players with the TRIM Index up to 92 in 2006 from 82 in 2005. Hutch captured the second slot with Reliance at the third position. Idea, BSNL and Tata Teleservices maintained performance but were below the industry average, it said.

State-run telecom major MTNL improved its TRIM Index rating to 100, while Aircel continued to top the regional player ratings with a score of 110.

The study covered about 3,000 mobile users and 1,057 multi-brand retail outlets across 17 telecom circles.