The wearable electronics market - Italy (2023)

1.2 The global market

The global wearable electronics market has been valued at $**.** billion in **** and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate(***) of **.* percent from **** to ****. The growing adoption of inteeligent wearable technology products among consumers drives the industry's growth.

Global wearable electronics market World, ****-****, in billions of dollars grandviewresearch.com

Territorial Insight

North America dominated the global industry in **** and accounted for the maximum share of **.* percent of total revenue, followed by the Asia Pacific and Europe regions.

The adoption ofhigh technology and the ease with which newly released items are made available were the main growth drivers for the regional market. In addition, devices that promote health, facilitate preventive treatment, and help manage ongoing ailments are in increasing demand. According to the National Library of Medicine, ** percent of Americans use wearable medical technologies.

The region with the highest growth rate between **** and **** is expected to beAsia Pacific.

Application Insight

The consumer electronics application segment led the industry in **** and accounted for the largest share of more than **.** percent of total sales. The increase in the use of wearable technologies, such as fitness bands and AR/VR viewers, can be attributed to the high share of this segment.

At ...

1.3 The Italian market

In****, according to the researchConsumer ****, carried out by Assorologi, the*,*%of the population (***) havepurchased a smart watch.

To get an approximate size of the market in Italy, given the lack of specific data, the number of Smart Watch owners is examined. The relative figure has increased gradually over the past * years. Specifically, in **** the number increased by **% compared to **** and **% compared to ****.

Smart Watch Owners Italy, ****-****, in millions of units assorologi.it

Regarding the average price, this has been on an upward trend for the past * years. In **** it grew by **% compared to **** and by *% compared to ****.

Smart watch average price trend Italy, ***-****, in euros assorologi.it

1.4 Import-Export

Regarding theimport-export of wearable devices, reference is made to the HS code closest to the category: ******: communication apparatus (***); machines for receiving or storing voice, images or other data, including switching and routing apparatus.

Looking at the chart below, it can be seen thatItaly is a net importer of such devices. However, there is an increasing trend in exports, with the coverage ratio also rising.

Import-Export of devices for receiving, converting or regenerating voice, images or other data Italy, ****-****, in billions of dollars (***)

Regarding imports, the main countries supplying these devices are China and the Netherlands , which together cover about ** percent of total imports to Italy. With smaller shares, Germany, Vietnam and Sweden follow.

Main countries of origin for the import of devices related to wearable use Italy, ****, % comtradeplus.un.org

As for exports, they are mainly directed to Spain and the U.S., which together account for about ** percent of total exports. This is followed by Switzerland with **.* percent, then the Czech Republic and Japan.

Main destinations of wearable-related device exports Italy, ****, % comtradeplus.un.org

1.5 Impact of covid-19

Impact on the market and consumer behavior

Demand for wearable devices declined during the covid-** pandemic, leading to a decline in sales.

Overall demand for such devices remained sluggish as individuals prioritized other needs. Wearable accessories such as smartwatches, wristbands, and trackers have seen little expansion due to the ban on outdoor fitness activities, leading to a decline in sales of such devices.

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Health monitoring and remote patient monitoring (***)

Although at the consumer level during the pandemic demand for wearable devices has been slow, in the healthcare sector, however, there has been growing interestin using such tools to monitor patients with covid-** and chronic diseases.

For example, in northwest London, wearable devices have been collecting the vital signs of quarantined perosne and health care workers who could not isolate themselves at home. This allows people to be admitted at the time they feel signs of deterioration, limiting contact and overloading of hospital facilities. In Northampton, wearable devices have been used to monitor patients with chronic disease or in recovery after contracting covid-**.

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Pilot projects and research initiatives

In light of the potential of wearable devices that emerged during the pandemic, several pilot projects emerged to test their use on ...

2.1 Demand in Italy

Demand for wearable devices on the rise globally

Demand for wearable devices has rebounded, with sales of smartwatches, fitness bracelets and other types of tech items starting to grow again after a period of stabilization in ****.

There were ** million units marketed in the second quarter of the year, up * percent from Q* **** levels.

"The wearables market has come back to life, on the back of growing consumer demand to satisfy various aspects of daily life," commented Jack Leathem, Research Analyst at Canalys. "Demand is picking up in several segments, which is driving vendors to address specific consumer needs."

The "basic" smartwatch category continued to grow, accounting for nearly half of the market by volume. Mostly thanks to brands such as Huawei, Xiaomi and Huami, which fueled supply, while on the demand side, the Indian market was the driving force. Fitness bracelets, on the other hand, accounted for ** percent of the ** million wearable devices marketed in the quarter.

In general, there is a trend among consumers to spend wisely, and consequently some vendors are launching new models at lower prices than in the past. For smartwatches and other premium devices such as the Apple Watch and Google's Fitbit, by contrast, the ...

2.2 Demand drivers

Cross-cutting application areas

The rapid diffusion of wearable devices has been driven primarily by the consumer world where they find their greatest popularity in the fitness/wellness arena. In fact, accessories such as electronic bracelets, smart watches and the like allow people to be able to monitor their vital parameters (***) to achieve a better level of well-being.

These claims are also confirmed by the survey conducted by Assorologi, Consumer ****, where the reasons for using smartwatches are investigated. In fact, among the predominant responses we find monitoring of fitness and health, in addition to other features that are considered particularly useful by consumers: reading messages, checking notifications, and others.

Reasons for Smart Watch Use Italy, ****, % assorologi.it

Another area of application in the consumer sector is that inherent in gaming/entertainment; in this case, smart glasses/head-mounted displays, with the support of technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality allow for visual and immersive gaming experiences, improving the overall gaming experience. Users thanks to these technologies can also speed up some everyday actions such as those related to home management (***) or contactless payments at the time of purchase. In addition, wearable devices also find application in the business sphere, driven by ...

2.3 The geographical distribution of demand

In order to understand how the demand for wearable devices is distributed in Italy, we report the geographical distribution by region in relation to the queries made on Google with topic: the Smart Watch and in particular category: Purchasing. The Smart Watch constitutes a type of wearable technological accessory, but it is particularly representative of the related market because of its diffusion.

The data are represented in the map on a scale of * to ***, where *** indicates the location with the highest frequency of searches as a proportion of total searches for that location, and a value of ** indicates a location with half as many searches.

The highest value on the scale is recorded in Sardinia, which records the highest number of searches on the topic; the lowest number is detected, however, in Valle d'Aosta, where queries are proportionally just under half as many as in the island. In general, the regions that detect the most searches are on the east coast of the peninsula, with the exception of Calabria, Sicily, Basilicata and clearly Sardinia.

2.4 New trends in demand

Smart rings

Propelled by innovative startups but with little media impact, these devices are currently not that popular, but perhaps in the future they could become so, and Apple's latest patent filed in August **** may be the tipping point.

A smart ring, is a wearable electronic device with several components that can analyze your health status, interface with other systems, for payments for example, and connect to your smartphone for data exchange.

This means that smart rings are typically equipped with numerous sensors for monitoring heart rate, electrocardiogram, blood oxygen or even blood pressure, and chips for connection such as NFC and Bluetooth. All in a microscopic format, a ring, in fact, to be worn on a finger. With the data collected, the connected app can determine your health status, workout, sleep patterns and much more.

So smart rings can accomplish much of the functions of a fitness tracker or smartwatch, but in a much more convenient and all in all stylish format , not to mention the fact that fingers are better for heart function measurements.

another application of smart rings is their use as a smart key to open doors. Token Ring, for example, has developed an optical sensor that ...

3.1 The market structure

Among the manufacturers with the best numbers are Huawei and Xiaomi , which, thanks to high-growth markets such as India, posted strong sales volume gains.

At the individual brand level, Apple retains the top position despite a * percent decline from the second quarter of ****. Its market share is ** percent, with *.* million devices shipped.

Stable in second place is Xiaomi with a share of**% and *.* million units shipped, while Huawei in one year has gained ** percentage points up to **% market share (***).

Closing the list of the most important players are Noise , which had an incredible growth of +**%, reaching*% market share, and Fire-Bott, with an equally important expansion (***), achieving *% market share.

Looking at the overall market picture from a competitive perspective, it can be said that the smartwatch market is concentrated, with only * manufacturers holding just over half of the total sales of the entire industry and with **% of the market share fragmented among all the remaining players.

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Smart Watch Market Shares World, ****, % (***)

3.2 The value chain

The following are the main steps that generate value in the wearable electronic device market.

3.3 Distribution

Regarding the distribution channels of one of the most popular wearables, namely the Smart Watch, we refer to data collected from a research conducted by Assolorogi.

Looking at the graph below, it can be seen that the online channel garners the preference of almost half of the respondents (***). In particular, the prinicipal channel is and Amazongeneralist e-commerce, right after that are large electronics chains such as MediaWorld, Unieuro, Euronics and the like. Smaller retail is identified as the third preference, in view of proximity advantage. Another online channel chosen is the brand's e-commerce site.

Smart Watch distribution channels Italy, ****, % assorologi.it

3.4 The main players

The following are the major global players in the wearables industry and specifically with reference to smartwatches.

Apple: a technology company based in Cupertino, California, is globally renowned for its innovative and high-quality products, which include iPhones, iPads, Macs, Apple Watch, and various software services. Founded in **** by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne, Apple has become an icon in consumer technology and design. The Apple Watch is one of Apple's most important product lines in the wearables industry. First launched in ****, the Apple Watch marked the company's entry into the smartwatch market, bringing with it a combination of sleek design, innovative functionality, and deep integration with the Apple ecosystem.

Huawei:founded in **** in China by Ren Zhengfei, is one of the leading global companies in information and communication technology (***) and smart devices. Originally focused on manufacturing telecommunication equipment, Huawei has greatly expanded its business scope to include smartphones, tablets, smart home devices, and smartwatches. Despite geopolitical challenges, Huawei has maintained a strong global market presence, distinguishing itself through the quality and innovation of its products. Huawei smartwatches are an integral part of the company's strategy for the wearable device market. The Huawei Watch series, in particular, has gained popularity ...

4.1 Supply analysis

Wearable Devices are technologically sophisticated electronic devices that can be worn by users or attached to clothing. They can be of different types and cover different areas of use, from health to sports.

"Wearable devices" (***) refers to a wide range of smart devices that can be connected to other electronic devices such as smartphones, wirelessly or via Bluetooth technology, allowing not only sensing but also storing and exchanging different kinds of data, immediately and often without the need for human intervention. Increasingly advanced, wearable devices are used for a variety of purposes: from detecting biometric signals, through sensors placed on the skin, to quickly accessing online information.

Some devices make it easier for users to access information, while others enable them to avoid dangerous situations, overcome certain obstacles or limitations, or perform tasks impossible for humans without the support of technology. Just think of wearable devices that enable the collection of data about the surrounding environment (***).

Thanks to theInternet of Things, it is possible to connect virtually any object to the Internet: wearable devices represent the most common use of this technology. Devices such as smartwatches and fitness bracelets collect, for example, biometric data that are automatically sent to other ...

4.2 The prices

Prices of wearable electronic devices vary widely depending on the type, brand, features, and functionality offered.

To get an overview of prices, we refer to the Smart Watch product and report the different types commercially available, differentiated by brand and found on the e-commerce site of a large electronics chain (***).

In addition to the SmartWatches attached are the prices of some Smart Bands or fitness trackers available on MediaWorld's e-commerce.

4.3 New supply trends

Future medical applications of wearable devices

To date, wearable devices for monitoring one's parameters are already available on the market, as are more wellness-related devices such as smartwatches that indicate calorie expenditure and medical devices, the main allies of health monitoring.

Within the next five years, more and more direct consumer/patient adoption of these tools is expected. Especially in relation to devices for monitoring chronic diseases, such as diabetes, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease, but not only. Tools are being developed for obesity monitoring, posture andgait detection and correction, breath-based disease detection, monitoring of infectious diseases, sleep, and vision impairment.

In addition, development goals includeintegrating and improving existing devices in such a way as to expand versatility and performance, tailoring it to the needs of patients. Second, developments move toward new, more manageable and more practical solutions that can be linked to digital medical records so that they can be viewed in real time by physicians.

Finally, the market is increasingly opening up to partnerships between technology companies and the medical world in order to implement the devices.

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5.1 The legislation

In Italy, as in the rest of the European Union, legislation regarding wearable devices focuses primarily on data security, privacy, and electronic device regulations.

Data protection and privacy (***)

The EU General Data Protection Regulation (***) applies to personal data collected by wearable devices. This includes informed consent for the collection and processing of personal data, the right of users to access their data and request deletion, and the need to ensure data security.

Security of electronic devices

Wearable devices must comply with European regulations on electronic device safety, including the Radio Frequency Device Directive (***) Directive. These regulations ensure that the devices do not interfere with other devices and are safe to use.

CE labeling and compliance

Wearable devices sold in Italy must have theCE label, which indicates that the product complies with EU safety, health and environmental protection regulations. The CE label is mandatory only for products for which there are EU-wide specifications that require CE marking (***). Before affixing the CE mark, it must be ensured that the product meets all relevant requirements, and this responsibility lies solely with the manufacturer. it is prohibited to affix the CE mark to products for which there are no EU-wide specifications or which do not ...

6.1 Segmentation

• Apple
• Huawei
• Xiaomi
• Noise
• Fire-Boltt