Smartphone are growing really fast. A new report from market research firm IHS iSuppli states that, by 2013, smartphones are forecasted to account for half of all phones sold.

By the end of 2013, 54 % of all phones globally will be smarpthones, IHS iSuppli predicted. That’s two years ahead of previous predictions by IHS iSuppli. Last year, smartphones comprised 35 % of the global market.

The firm cites increased demand from developed regions for high-end smartphones along with an unexpectedly strong push from emerging economies for lower-cost smartphones. 

“This represents a major upgrade for the outlook compared to a year ago, when smartphones weren’t expected to take the lead until 2015,” IHS senior analyst Wayne Lam said in a statement. “Over the past 12 months, smartphones have fallen in price, and a wider variety of models [has] become available, spurring sales of both low-end smartphones in regions like Asia-Pacific, as well as midrange to high-end phones in the United States and Europe.”

Lam predicts that smartphone shipments would continue to grow by double digit percentages for the next few years. By 2016, Lam expects smartphones shipments to account for 67.4 % of the total cell phone market.

The report said that by the end of this year, smartphone sales will already begin to outstrip sales of so-called feature phones, which often have cameras and simple Web interfaces.

Shipments of feature phones—a grade above the most basic, low-cost entry-level phones—are expected to decline in coming years as the smartphone continues its rise, according to IHS. Shipments of feature phones are expected to decline to 41 % of the total market in 2012, down from 46 % last year, according to IHS. By 2016, the firm expects shipments of feature phones to decline to 28 % of the total market.