Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB)’s BlackBerry device and Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK)’s Lumia device both face one major problem that could limit their ability to grow: regional dependence. Google Trends publishes a Regional Interest map, which shows the search volumes from different types of phones all over the world. This map gives us a good indication of the demand for BlackBerry and Nokia products.
We’ve already seen indications that demand for Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB)’s BlackBerry Z10 is high in Canada and the U.K. But according to BGR News, we see some other alarming trends in BlackBerry demand.
Within the last three months, the Google Trends map shows that Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB)’s BlackBerry Z10 seems to be going strong in the parts of the world where it traditionally has, like Nigeria, Canada, South Africa, India and Indonesia. However the U.S., Brazil, Germany and Spain have apparently not yet embraced the Z10.
As BGR points out, the affluent countries in which BlackBerry was once starting to take hold have now moved on. However the more economically challenged economies and, of course, the company’s home nation, are still holding onto it. This means that demand for BlackBerry devices is quite limited, probably because the company has taken so long to put out its next device. When limiting the Google Trends map to just a week, it becomes just how narrow BlackBerry’s market now is.
And Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK) has the same problem Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) (now BlackBerry) does. The Google Trends map shows that the company’s Lumia 620 is apparently in heavy use in Vietnam, Thailand, India and Finland. However Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK)’s traditional budget markets of Spain, France, Brazil and Russia are not doing so well.
Unfortunately for these two struggling handset makers, the Galaxy Note II made by Samsung covers numerous diverse markets all over the world.
