An international organization of mobile carriers says the global penetration rate of smartphones exceeded 50 percent last year for the first time.

The Global System for Mobile Communications Association(GSMA) said in a report Wednesday that the global smartphone distribution rate stood at 51 percent at the end of last year and is expected to reach 75 percent by 2020.

The organization said that more smartphones are in use than feature phones around the world except for the sub-Saharan African region. The smartphone industry was also predicted to grow, particularly, in emerging markets.

The report predicts the smartphone penetration rate will jump 47 percent in 2016 to 62 percent in 2020 in China, India and Indonesia with high growth also expected in Nigeria, Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Brazil.

According to South Korea’s Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning, the distribution rate of smartphones amounted to 85 percent in the nation, the highest level in the world.