MediaTek Becomes The Largest Smartphone Chip Maker

The Taiwanese chip manufacturer Mediatek rose to become the largest smartphone chipset manufacturer worldwide for the first time thanks to its production figures in the third quarter of 2020. Mediatek has now overtaken Qualcomm in numbers.

This is reported by Counterpoint Research and refers to the company’s latest business figures. More than 100 million smartphones were sold worldwide with Mediatek chipsets in Q3/2020. This made the group the largest provider of smartphone SoCs with a market share of 31 percent. This is based on estimates by Counterpoint.

Mediatek’s strong performance in the $100-250 price range and growth in key regions such as China and India helped the company become the largest smartphone chipset, supplier. From the current development, however, it is very possible that this change at the top will only last for a short time – there is a chance that Qualcomm will regain the top position in Q4/2020.

The US company Qualcomm was the largest supplier of 5G chipsets in Q3/2020. 39 percent of all 5G-enabled smartphones sold worldwide are equipped with the company’s chips. A lot of exercises is also expected, although not necessarily very soon. Among other things, it is rumored that Apple will use its own 5G modem as early as 2021 with the acquisition of the Intel modem division and can therefore do without Qualcomm. Mediatek’s strong market share gain can be attributed to various reasons.

In addition to the strong performance in the mid-range segment, the US ban on Huawei also contributed to this. Mediatek was able to use the loophole. As a result, affordable Mediatek chips made by TSMC have become the first option for many OEMs.