One in Two Wireless Earphones is 'AirPods'... Apple Dominates the Market

Apple Ships 58.7 Million AirPods in 2019
Apple Holds 54.4% Market Share, Accounts for 70% of Wireless Earphone Sales

2019 Wireless Earphone Market Share (Source: Strategy Analytics Website)

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] Apple shipped approximately 60 million wireless earphones, including AirPods, last year. Leading the growth of the wireless earphone market, which tripled in size last year, Apple recorded a market share of over half.

According to market research firm Strategy Analytics (SA) and Yonhap News on the 15th, the wireless earphone market grew by 200% in 2019, with Apple holding a 54.4% share (58.7 million units). Xiaomi followed in second place with 8.5% (9.1 million units), and Samsung Electronics took third place with 6.9% (7.4 million units).

In particular, Apple’s wireless earphone shipments last year doubled compared to 2018 (28.6 million units). Apple launched the 'AirPods' in September 2016, followed by AirPods 2 in March 2019, and the 'AirPods Pro' with noise-canceling features in November of the same year. The consecutive release of follow-up products led to a rapid increase in sales.

Ville Petri Yukonaho, Vice President of SA, said, "Wireless earphones have become a new revenue source for smartphone manufacturers, and Apple’s sales outside of iPhones have significantly increased thanks to Beats and AirPods," adding, "It will be difficult for other manufacturers to replace Apple in the Bluetooth-based wireless earphone market in the short term."

Ken Hyers, Director at SA, explained, "Even if other manufacturers emerge, Apple is expected to maintain a dominant position in the wireless earphone market for about the next five years."

According to IT analyst Kevin Luke, Apple’s wireless earphone sales last year are estimated to have reached $12 billion (approximately 13.9 trillion KRW). SA’s research also showed that Apple accounted for 71% of the wireless earphone market revenue last year.

Since Apple launched AirPods, the wireless earphone market has grown exponentially. The market, which was only 1 million units in 2016, reached 15 million units in 2017, 35 million units in 2018, and about 107 million units in 2019. It is expected to increase to 220 million units this year, expanding to 370 million units in 2021, 600 million units in 2022, and 1.2 billion units by 2024.

As the wireless earphone market opens widely, various manufacturers besides Apple, Samsung, and Xiaomi are releasing wireless earphone products. Manufacturers such as JBL, Huawei, Beats, Jabra, Bose, Jaybird, Sony, Amazon, Skullcandy, and Realme are launching wireless earphones. The market for wireless earphones equipped with AI assistants is also gradually expanding. Amazon released the 'Echo Buds' in September last year, and this year Google is preparing the 'Pixel Buds 2', while Microsoft is preparing the 'Surface Earbuds'.

Director Ken Hyers said, "As wireless earphone chipset prices have fallen, hundreds of thousands of manufacturers releasing affordable wireless earphones have appeared over the past six months," explaining, "The options for mid- to low-priced wireless earphones that consumers can choose from have increased, even if they are not premium products like those from Apple, Bose, or Samsung."