-- Samsung Remains Top Tech Brand Followed By Sony

BOSTON, March 17, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Apple's brand preference rating fell by 5.1 points between Q2 and Q4 2013, one of the weakest performances of 21 major technology brands in the latest survey published by Strategy Analytics' ConsumerMetrix service. Of particular concern to Apple is that its rating fell furthest in its core affluent and younger demographics. Samsung remained in first place, gaining ground in continental Europe but falling back in the US and UK. The best performance came from Chinese brand Huawei with an increase of 3.8 points since Q2 2013 and strong gains in upper income segments. The brand preference rating is an indication of the balance between consumers who say they would choose a brand and those who would not, when buying technology products such as computers, mobile phones, TVs and related products, based on a survey of 6180 respondents in the US and Europe.

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Other conclusions from the survey included:

• Apple's weak performance may be attributed to its relative lack of new product introductions
• While still an emerging brand, Huawei's recent improvement suggests that its early marketing efforts are already having an impact
• Blackberry (down 11.9 points) and Motorola (down 6.1) saw the biggest declines, reflecting the difficulties of these brands in recent times

"Apple's challenge is to stem the flow away from its stronghold segments while expanding its presence across other income and age demographics," says David Mercer, Principal Analyst and the report's author. "Our research shows that none of today's leading technology brands can afford to rest on their laurels as newcomers such as Huawei are ready to provide serious competition."

Other brands in the survey included Acer, Amazon, Asus, Blackberry, Compaq, Google, Huawei, Lenovo, Mitsubishi, Motorola, Nokia, Sanyo, Sharp, Vizio.

Source: Strategy Analytics ConsumerMetrix survey, Dec 13/Jan 14

Methodology: The 2013 Q4 ConsumerMetrix survey was fielded online in December 2013 and January 2014. The sample consisted of n=2024 individuals in the US and n=4095 individuals in Europe ages 15-65+. The data was weighted by country, age, gender and internet use to represent the US and European populations of internet users, respectively.

The survey question referred to in this study was phrased as follows:

"When you think about buying any technology product (such as computers, mobile phones, TVs or related products), given what you know about these brands and what you would normally spend on these products, please indicate the probability that you would choose each of the following brands."

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About Strategy Analytics
Strategy Analytics, Inc. provides the competitive edge with advisory services, consulting and actionable market intelligence for emerging technology, mobile and wireless, digital consumer and automotive electronics companies. With offices in North America, Europe and Asia, Strategy Analytics delivers insights for enterprise success. www.StrategyAnalytics.com

Contact: David Mercer, +44-1908-423610, dmercer@strategyanalytics.com
US Contact: Eric Smith, +1-617-614-0752, esmith@strategyanalytics.com

SOURCE Strategy Analytics