Samsung Electronics and China-based white-box handset makers will benefit from Microsoft Mobile's decision to phase out its feature phone business within one and a half years, Digitimes Research believes.

Samsung and white-box handset makers have been competing for the orders left out by Microsoft Mobile since the third quarter of 2014, and Digitimes Research estimates that Microsoft Mobile has been shipping about 10-15 million feature phones a month in 2014.

After recent visits to more than 10 white-box handset makers and related component suppliers in China, Digitimes Research estimates that white-box handset makers combined are still shipping about 35-40 million feature phones a month in the second half of 2014, and therefore those makers are able to take over the orders left by Microsoft.

Although Samsung has shifted its focus to smartphones and tablets, it began to increase its handset component orders in the third quarter of 2014, also vying to land some windfall orders left over by Microsoft, while boosting sales of its handset business units.

Since MediaTek and Spreadtrum Communications are the two major chipset suppliers for white-box feature phone makers, and Samsung also purchases feature phone solutions from Spreadtrum, the two solution vendors thus will also benefit from Microsoft Mobile's move, said Digitimes Research.