According to IDC, the current national lockdowns put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus will lead to the value of the European smartphone market falling by over -25% in 2020.
The -26.8% decline comes from the "probable" scenario the analyst forecast. An optimistic scenario sees the market falling in value by -10% in 2020, while the pessimistic version has it drop by nearly -50%. The probable and pessimistic scenarios represent the sharpest reversal the European phone industry has seen in the 20 years IDC has been monitoring the market. So far, the sharpest drop the region has seen took place at the time of the financial crisis, when the value of the European phone market fell by -6.3% in 2008 and -13.1% in 2009 in dollar terms. According to Eurostat, the European GDP contracted by over -4% in 2009.
Global shipments of smart home voice control devices total 141 million in 2019, and despite the impact on the key Chinese market in Q1 2020 the analyst predicts shipments of such devices will grow by close to 30% over last year. Of course, the full potential of voice control is unlocked in conjunction with other smart home devices. For example, customers can leverage voice to control and monitor smart locks, directly enabling the placement of deliveries in the home or another secure locations. Similarly, smart doorbells and video cameras can ensure deliveries are received securely, without need for face-to-face interaction or exposure.
