Qualcomm still led the global smartphone application processor (AP) market in the second quarter, but lost share to Huawei, according to a recent Counterpoint report.

Qualcomm's market share in the second quarter was 29 percent, down 4 percentage points from the same period last year. Huawei's HiSilicon market share was 16 percent, up 4 percentage points from a year earlier.

MediaTek accounted for 26 percent, up 2 percentage points from the same period last year; Apple accounted for 13 percent; Samsung accounted for 13 percent; and Unisoc accounted for 4 percent.

Huawei's Rotating Chairman says will continue to invest in HiSilicon

The smartphone application processor market declined 26% in the second quarter as smartphone sales plummeted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting restrictions.

“While the overall smartphone market declined due to the ongoing pandemic, the decline in market share for Qualcomm was partly also due to Huawei, which increased the use of HiSilicon APs after US restrictions, and its growing share in China, the world’s largest smartphone market,” said Neil Shah, VP of Research at Counterpoint. 

Qualcomm’s share in Huawei (including HONOR) smartphones declined from 12% in Q2 2019 to 3% in Q2 2020, Shah said. 

More restrictions on Huawei’s (HiSilicon’s) ability to manufacture chipset at TSMC cast a major doubt on its future smartphone sales, the report noted. 

Expanding on the potential shift in competitive dynamics due to Huawei restrictions, Research Analyst Shobhit Srivastava said: “

OPPO, vivo, Realme and Xiaomi will be the key drivers for Qualcomm and MediaTek as they look to fill the big gap which Huawei might leave behind in near- to mid-term, said Counterpoint Research Analyst Shobhit Srivastava. 

"And this could be more beneficial for Qualcomm in the premium segment ($400+ wholesale), especially in China where Huawei dominates with over 40% market share, and in the mid- to high-tier segments in markets like Europe," Srivastava said.

China ships 43 million 5G phones in Q2, more than half of which use Huawei HiSilicon chips