Jennifer Chin recently upgraded her smartphone, opting for a Huawei P10 lite for better functions and value for money. "I wanted to try something new," said the college student, who tossed her old Oppo, a Chinese brand.

As in other parts of the world, people of Chin's generation, in search of an enhanced user experience at lower prices, have been shaping the mobile phone market in Malaysia.

In a market that averages 1.34 mobile phones per resident, phone makers are gnawing away at each other's markets with improved features and rock-bottom prices.

In the first nine months of the year, 7 million smartphones were sold in Malaysia, and that number is projected to hit close to 9.8 million units in 2017, according to market research firm IDC. "This indicates a recovery for the Malaysian market, as shipments have picked up again, growing 13% year on year," said IDC senior analyst Jensen Ooi in a recent interview.

Although Samsung Electronics maintains the top market position at about 40%, Chinese makers Oppo, Vivo and Huawei Technologies, with a combined share of 30% as of the end of September, are closing the gap with aggressive marketing and a wide range of models.

"Chinese players have been able to successfully establish themselves in the industry, a trend that has not only been catching on in Malaysia but similarly across the region as well," said Ooi.

Matured smartphone users are seeking good specs-to-price ratio models, upgrading from their ultra-low-end, below 400 ringgit ($98) phones to mid-range ones priced at 850 ringgit to 1,700 ringgit, he added. Chinese makers fit into this category.

"Oppo understands youngsters best," said Nikki Chen. The branding director for Oppo Malaysia was speaking in Kuala Lumpur last month at the launch of the company's latest model, the F5, which boasts advanced artificial intelligence beauty recognition technology, that the company says allows users to capture "perfect selfies anytime."

Along with an aggressive marketing strategy of engaging local celebrities as brand ambassadors and selling products through retail outlets, Oppo has emerged as the second top-selling mobile phones in Malaysia, only four years after entering the market. It accounts for 38% of total market share of mid-range products as of the end of September, according to Oppo Malaysia. Sales by value rose 187% in 2016.

As part of its efforts to understand its customers better, Oppo has about 6,000 retail vendors that market its products. That number is about two-thirds of total mobile phone vendors in the country, indicating Oppo's strategy to push products through physical outlets rather than e-commerce.

By: DocMemory
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