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Take note smartphone specialists, this is how you do a global launch. Samsung may have entered the open OS space late, but it is showing off the full power of its global reach and scale, pushing its Galaxy S flagship to almost every major carrier - while pulling off the neat trick of giving the US quartet their own brands and slight product variations for differentiation. So Verizon can launch its Fascinate phone this week as an 'exclusive', even though it is basically the Galaxy S adapted for its network and bands. Now, with the phone clocking up 3m sales worldwide already, Samsung has announced plans to launch with all three Chinese cellcos.

This involves creating versions for all three 3G networks in the country. China Telecom will offer a CDMA2000 device called SCH-I909, China Mobile a TD-SCDMA model, the GT-I9008, and China Unicom's W-CDMA version will be the GT-I9088. All three will go on sale within the next two months. The China Telecom variation has dual-standby, supporting both CDMA and GSM networks for roaming, while the China Mobile device will incorporate the CMMB mobile TV service the carrier's own Android-based software platform, Ophone 2.0.

Such launches are one factor behind increasing optimism about the smartphone sector. This week, IDC upgraded its forecast for sales in 2010 by a full 10%. The research firm now expects smartphone sales to grow by 55.4% compared to 2009, which would equate to 269.6m 'converged mobile devices' (as IDC calls them) this year compared to the 173.5m units shipped in 2009.

"The smartphone is the catalyst behind the rebound in the worldwide mobile phone market this year," said senior analyst Kevin Restivo. "Additional product introductions and an expected flurry of smartphone buying activity in the second half of the year will push the market well above previous expectations."

For the first half of 2010, vendors shipped a total of 119.4m units or 55.5% more than the 76.8m units shipped during the first half of 2009.

Accelerated smartphone growth will impact the whole phone sector, and IDC now expects the overall cellphone market to grow by 14.1% year-on-year, or 1.5% higher than its previous forecast. Last year, the market declined 2.8%.

The outlook for 2011 is also strong, with IDC forecasting a rise of 24.5% in unit terms. However, smartphone growth will decline progressively over the next five years - by 2014, the growth rate will have slid to just 13.6%.

"IDC believes the market will comfortably support up to five OS players over the next five years," Restivo noted. "Shorter replacement cycles and an ample feature phone to smartphone upgrade opportunity means the smartphone OS market will remain fragmented but healthy for the foreseeable future."

In OS terms, IDC believes Symbian will maintain its lead throughout the five-year forecast period with 32.9% share in 2014, but will lose share, mainly to Android, which is expected to increase from 16.3% to 24.6%. Windows is expected to regain some share on the back of WP7 while BlackBerry's share will remain relatively constant and that of Apple iOS will decline gradually.

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