The rate of adoption of smart speakers continues to defy expectations and there are clear signs that the market is starting to move from the early adopter phase to hitting the mass market, according to Strategy Analytics (www.strategyanalytics.com). What’s more, the Chinese market for smart speakers will receive a kick-start in quarter fourth thanks to aggressive pricing and promotions around Chinese Singles' Day of devices from Alibaba, Xiaomi and JD.com as well as the much anticipated launch of Baidu's first Duer OS speaker, the research group adds.

Key findings from Strategy Analytics latest smart speaker quarterly report include:

° North America dominated sales of smart speakers in the third quarter of 2017 with nearly 75% global share although growth in Western Europe and Asia Pacific will reduce that share in quarter four.

° Amazon Alexa's AI operating system fell to 69% share of smart speakers in the third quarter, down from over 80% in the first half of 2017 as Google Assistant made strong gains following the launch of Google Home in a greater number of territories.

° The Chinese market started to show shoots of growth in the third quarter, driven by new device launches from Alibaba and Xiaomi although JD.com with its Dingdong speaker remained the top ranking brand in China during the quarter.