Motorola Expected To Lose No. 1 U.S. Handset PositionMotorola Expected To Lose No. 1 U.S. Handset Position

Motorola, the company that virtually invented the cell phone and rode it to soaring sales and profits is due to be humbled next year when it loses its top shipment position in U.S. handsets, according to a report released this week from MultiMedia Intelligence.

The market research firm predicted that Motorola will be knocked off its perch in U.S. cell phone shipments by Korean handset suppliers Samsung and LG. At the same time, Apple's iPhone and Research In Motion's BlackBerry will also gain market share at the expense of Motorola.

In its survey of the U.S. cell phone market, MultiMedia found that the marketplace tends to be fragmented with different manufacturers staking out different segments. Samsung, which MultiMedia expects will take over the top spot next year, is scoring highest in the 12- to 17-year-old age group and also among African American and Hispanic consumers.

LG ranks first in the 25- to 34-year-old age group, which is dominated by males. BlackBerry sales are likely to double next year, MultiMedia said, noting that users between 35 and 44 tend to like the phone. Older cell phone users gravitate to the Nokia, which is the No. 1 vendor for consumers 65 and older, according to the survey.

"There are clear differences in the handset choices by different genders," MultiMedia said. "Samsung is the number one vendor to women in 2008 whereas Motorola is the number one vendor to males. Women make up nearly 60% of all U.S. Treo consumers. "

Motorola has committed to breaking itself into two companies, but its initial attempt at bifurcation hasn't drawn any serious suitors. Sanjay Jha, the new head of Motorola's Mobile Device unit, hasn't had enough time on the job to create any concrete improvements in the wireless unit yet while the company's catch-all unit, the Broadband & Mobility Solutions unit, is being pressed by the world's failing economic situation.

Predicting that Motorola's handset shipments will grow 21% in 2008, MultiMedia said "Samsung and LG are closing fast and promise to surpass Motorola in 2009."