Nokia popularity fading among teens: survey

HELSINKI, FINLAND: Nokia's popularity among teenagers is fading, according to a survey by networking site Habbo Hotel, that deals a blow to the ambition of the world's top cellphone maker to become its best-loved brand.

In the survey of 112,000 teenagers in 30 countries, 21 per cent of respondents named Nokia as their favourite cellphone brand, down from 29 percent last year.

Nokia sells the most mobile handsets in the world, but Chief Executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo has repeatedly stated the company's ambition to win the global popularity contest as well, contending with such well-known brands as Coca-Cola.

In the latest annual Interbrand rankings, Nokia was the highest-rated non-U.S. brand, but stood fifth globally, with its $35.9 billion value just behind General Electric.

The Habbo survey numbers exclude some key emerging markets, including India and China, where Nokia is the market leader. The average age of respondents varied between 13 and 16 years in different countries.

Sony Ericsson, which has a stronger position in developed markets, was the second most favoured mobile phone brand among teens. However, its support also slipped from last year, to 18 percent from 21 percent.

Motorola dropped to sixth place from third last year, bypassed by Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Apple.

All handset vendors are suffering this year from plunging demand, with the overall mobile phone market expected to shrink 10 percent in 2009 as consumers rein in spending and handset sellers try to clear out unsold phones.

Nokia's global market share fell slightly to 36 percent in the first quarter of 2009, with closest rivals Samsung and LG gaining ground and controlling 19 and 10 percent of the market, respectively.

Motorola's market share fell to 6 percent, while Sony Ericsson controlled 5 percent of the market.