Apple is looking for its newest line of iPhones to spur a strong Christmas and holiday sales season — and the company really needs that.

A new report on the smartphone market says Apple is dealing with a worldwide decline in iPhone demand while its two-largest rivals continue to rack up sales at Apple’s expense. According to that report, from technology research firm Gartner, Apple’s smartphone sales in the third quarter of this year fell by 10.7% from the same year ago, to 40.8 million phones.

Gartner analyst Anshul Gupta said Apple’s decline is indicative of changing buying habits of consumers, who don’t feel the need to get the next hot model as soon as it is released.

“Today’s smartphone user is opting for mid-tier smartphones over premium-tier ones because they offer better value for money,” Gupta said. “Although Apple continued its sales promotions and discounts in various markets, this was not enough to stimulate demand globally.”

The shift toward buying less-expensive phones has benefited Apple rivals like Samsung and Huawei. Gartner’s figures showed Samsung holding on to the No. 1 smartphone spot, as its sales rose by almost 6 million phones, to 79 million phones and a 20.4 percent market share. Huawei came in second place, with sales of 65.8 million phones and market share of 17 percent.

Apple maintained its spot as the No. 3 smartphone seller around the world, but saw its market share fall, from 11.8% to 10.5% in the third quarter of 2018.

The third quarter of the year is typically a weaker one for Apple, as the company usually only gets a week or two of sales from its newest iPhones during the period. The last three months of any year are the company’s strongest, due to demand for its new iPhones among holiday shoppers.

Smartphone sales across the board will likely see a spike from holiday sales, including on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Gupta said, adding that sales could also pick up in 2020 as more countries roll out 5G wireless network coverage.

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