MIC further stated that global Smartphone shipment volume is expected to reach around 626.0 million units in 2012 and further to 1.456 billion units in 2016, with a 23.5% CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate). MIC estimates that the shipment share of Smartphones priced under US$300 will reach around 17.5% in 2012 and further to 44.1% in 2016. Meanwhile, with the already high penetration rate of Smartphones in developed countries, it is anticipated that emerging countries' share of the global Smartphone market will increase significantly and the said countries will eventually command the largest share of the global Smartphone market demand.

Taiwan's mobile phone application IC industry's shipment value has been doomed for a while, experiencing the deepest decline by over 20%, mainly due to the market saturation of feature phones, the increasingly fierce competition in the chip market, and the continuous decline in chip prices, said Cindy Ku, a senior analyst at MIC. However, with the rapid rise of the low- and mid-priced Smartphone market segments, Taiwanese mobile phone application IC manufacturers are known for their capabilities in cost control and in provision of comprehensive solutions and technical support. Consequently, Taiwanese manufacturers are expected to bring growth opportunities to the industry, Ku commented.

In 2011, Taiwanese mobile phone application IC industry's shipment value still heavily relied on feature phones and Smartphones only took up around 10% of industry's shipment value. Taiwanese manufacturers took their sides, focusing on the low-priced segment of Smartphones which are normally priced at around US$150 and are relatively price sensitive with respect to the purchase of mobile phone application ICs. In 2012, baseband IC suppliers are expected to launch some low-priced Smartphones with high-end specs that are likely to be more appealing to customers, noted MIC.

In response to market fluctuations, mobile phone application IC manufacturers in the low- and mid-priced segments of the Smartphone market shall give some thoughts on strategies involved product and customer developments, for instance, providing an optimal and suitable solution in response to online behaviors and/or content/service preferences of individual consumers around the world. In addition, IC manufacturers are also seeking alliances with other companies to provide more complete solutions, under which they can allocate resources effectively while help accelerate time to market so as to tap market opportunities ahead of others, according to MIC