Mobile phone sales drop by 29% in Japan in 2008

According to MM Research Institute, the cellphone shipments decreased by 29.3% YoY in Japan in 2008, totaling in 35.8 million units. Sharp was leading the pack for four years consecutively, shipping over 8 million handsets last year. International players failed to make a big impact in 2008, grouped in the Other category where Apple iPhone and HTC Diamond were notoriously visible. The 2009 outlook doesn't look bright as the handset shipments are expected to drop by another 7.5% hitting the low of 33.2 million units.

Source: MM Research Institute via Keitai Watch