Marco Trend Analysis of Smartphones in the Telecommunication Industry Research Paper

Marco Trend Analysis of Smartphones in the Telecommunication Industry - Research Paper Example A competitive environment therefore is affected by the following six macro trends: Demographic, sociocultural, economic, technological, regulatory and natural environment (Mullins & Walker, 2010). This paper will analyze the macro trends that affect the smartphones in the telecommunication industry and how the trends might impact the successful marketing of the smartphones by different telecommunication companies. The first macro trend is technological trend such that the telecommunication industry has to keep up with latest technology in the market. Many customers in the western world do not only buy smartphones but buy them keeping in mind the latest operating systems and other features that are make the devices perform better and faster. Statistics showed that demand for smartphones in Europe and the U.S stalled in 2011 because many customers waited for the flagship of devices that featured the latest versions of key operating systems. Slowdowns are also seen in Asian and Latin Am erica of about 23.9% compared to last year 28.2%. This figure show the leading provider of smartphones, Nokia, as other companies trailed behind (Wall St. Cheat Sheet, 2011). This trend is seen to go on for the coming decade and this is because of the new technologies that emerge every year such as Symbian systems, android systems, windows systems and increased processing capabilities and power. The second trend is the sociocultural trend such that we have witnessed the growth of the mobile phones from the texting and calling only device to a device that has helped us connect with friends and family all over the world. Social networking, gaming and shopping are part and parcel of our daily lives. The smartphones have changed how people engage in these activities. At the moment many smartphones allow for instant communication both through text and video. In five years’ time, with the development of the 3G and 4G lite technologies, will see the smartphones take advantage of thi s and bring video conferencing to the phone. Many companies will need to adapt to the change in the industry and focus on how to best meet the social needs of the people. The third trend is the economic trend where a look at the previous three two years show a decline in the sale of smartphones because of the economic recession. Many people opted to buy budget phones because of increased prices that they could not manage. People’s spending reduced as the impact of the recession took toll on them. The market of smartphones declined. In the coming years the economy in many parts of the world is picking up and more people are bound to buy smartphones. This is because companies have realized the need for the people in the lower end of the market to own such products in order to build the economy. Many have come up with smartphones that are cheap and affordable. A good example is the Nokia C3 smartphone and the ZTE Blade. These phones have the latest technology at reduced prices ( Mohapi, 2011). The trend is seen to continue with many of these companies wanting to penetrate other untapped markets such as Africa. Increased sales will be seen in these areas if the smartphones will be cheaper as is the trend now. The above identified trends will affect the marketing of smartphones in one way or another. Marketers need to come up strategies