Ningbo Bird has become the first Chinese mobile phone maker to beat foreign rivals for the biggest slice of the mainland market.
According to a report by the Ministry of Information Industry (MII), Ningbo Bird captured 15.01 per cent of the mainland's handset market in the first six months of this year, pushing Motorola, with 14.21 per cent, into second place.
The Chinese manufacturer, which mainly targets the middle and low-end markets, attributed its market dominance to a better understanding of local preferences and lower prices. A Ningbo Bird spokesman said a wider network of distribution channels was another reason for the success.
Leading foreign brands such as Motorola and Nokia sell a higher proportion of high-end products.
In the first six months, local brands claimed 55.28 per cent of the domestic market, 16.21 percentage points higher than their share for the whole of last year.
TCL, another major mainland handset maker, ranked third with 11.64 per cent of the domestic market, followed by Nokia's 9.72 per cent and Konka's 6.65 per cent.