Smartphones will drive $20 billion in aftermarket accessory revenues this year, accounting for more than half of the $36 billion that all aftermarket handset accessories will produce. By 2017, smartphone accessories will grow to $38 billion in revenues, with feature phone accessory revenues declining to $12 billion.
Feature phone consumers will spend an average of $28.17 on accessories per device, while smartphone owners will spend almost double or $56.18 on accessories per device. The difference in spending is driven by a combination of consumers spending more per accessory and purchasing more accessories for smartphones as compared to feature phone owners.
It’s obvious that smartphone users are spending more as they’re increasingly looking to leverage on device applications and communication protocols that can “increase the design complexity” and allow the accessories to become “service delivery platforms.”
ABI Research also has a piece of advice for accessory makers, suggesting them to work on brand recognition by developing engaging, innovative accessories that extend the value proposition of today’s mass market accessories…