The Week in Tech: Smartwatch category in decline and Bluesky thinking
Marketing Week’s weekly round-up of the technology stories that impact the marketing sector: from AI to martech, regulation to public perceptions.
Trouble is brewing for the smartwatch category, as new data shows the market declined for the first time ever in 2024.
Stats from research company Counterpoint show a 7% decline in the category, something which has been attributed to a fall in sales for the market leader Apple, with its Apple Watch seeing a 19% year-on-year decline in shipments. Despite this fall, Apple remains the market leader with 21% of the overall smartwatch category, ahead of Huawei, which saw shipments increase by 35% propelling it to a 13% overall share.
Huawei’s success is indicative of the wider growth of the Chinese market, with rivals Imoo and Xiaomi also showing impressive growth. The data finds 2024 was the first year China recorded the highest smartwatch shipments from the regions it tracks at 25%, ahead of India (23%) and North America (22%). The North American market declined in 2024, something Counterpoint attributes to flat sales of Apple’s S10 series.
