Handset giant Samsung has acquired UK chipmaker CSR’s handset technology development business in a deal worth $310m. The acquisition is part of Samsung’s “complete platform strategy”, according to analysts, as the Korean vendor looks to cut its dependency on external silicon suppliers.
An Intel executive has admitted that the company’s historical inability to win a share of the mobile space stemmed from its failure to properly understand the operator community. Herbert Weber, EMEA marketing director for mobile and communications at Intel, told Telecoms.com that the firm has since taken the time to understand the nuances between the PC and mobile business models and has adjusted its offerings and features accordingly to appeal to operators and consumers alike.
ZTE hopes to help pave the way to becoming third largest handset vendor by 2015 with an array of eight new devices launched at MWC 2012. Although a global aspiration, the new devices will mainly target users in Europe, Japan, the USA and China.
The new innovations that could revolutionise handsets are making their way to the market after a Korean handset manufacturer announced it is launching an Android handset equipped with touchless hand gesture recognition technology, while Samsung has confirmed it will be launching devices next year that will have flexible display screens.
Struggling handset vendor Sony Ericsson on Monday announced a change of leadership that will see chief executive Dick Komiyama step down at the end of the year, to be replaced by Bert Nordberg, currently executive vice president of Ericsson.
The recent 2Q09 earnings results of the world’s top five handset vendors by volume showed a quarter-on-quarter growth of 12.1% in shipment numbers, led by LG, Samsung and Nokia. With channel inventory reduced to more normal levels, prospects for continued quarterly growth in 2H09 have improved. However, challengers such as ZTE could displace Motorola or Sony Ericsson while they restructure.
Consumers are increasingly drawn to online purchasing for new mobile phones in Europe’s largest markets, with Amazon and eBay taking the lion’s share of business, according to new findings from the TNS ComTech research project.
Mobile phone shipments in 2009 are forecast to be down globally by about 9.1 per cent, according to analyst figures released this week, as economic gloom continues to cloud the horizon.
Ten ways for operators to cut costs
Issue 151 June 2008
Featuring:
Handsets: The arrival of the iPhone has been the catalyst for renewed terminal design everywhere.
India: The fastest growing mobile market in the world.
The handset market looks like a one horse race. But things are getting interesting in the chasing pack.
Issue 144 October 2007
Featuring:
As seen on TV: Mobile TV is coming, but question marks remain
Microsoft & Google: The software giants are gaining ground in the mobile space
Issue 133 July/August 2006 Featuring: Low cost handsets. The price was right The young pretender.Taking it to the MAX
Should operators be rethinking their segmentation strategies? Issue 131 May 2006 Featuring: Keeping the handset secure No Longer a la mode. Has i-mode had its day?
Mobile gaming has been held up as a natural revenue spinner for operators. But while the demand is there, it’s not developing quite as expected.
Issue 116 November 2004
Featuring:
Country Focus: Who’s winning the vote in the US market?
The handset market: Out with the old and in with the new
Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin talks to Mobile Communications International Issue 108 February 2004 Featuring: Sum of its parts: developments in handset technology Content with voice? Turning consumers onto data
The music business goes mobile Issue 103 Jul/Aug 2003 Featuring: Engaging the enterprise The race for handset supremacy
The voice of the people in 160 characters or less Issue 101 May 2003 Featuring: mm02 finally offloads its Dutch operation Another handset hopeful arrives
A retrospective assessment of the events and trends that defined 2002 Issue 97 Dec/Jan 02/03 Featuring: Wireless LAN, CEO Departures, Multimedia Messaging 3G Like services, NTT DoCoMo, Network Outsourcing Handsets, UMTS Withdrawals, Microsoft
Is the wireless industry terminally ill or back on the mend? Issue 88 February 2002 Featuring: Country Focus: South Korea Business: Industry Overview and Consolidation Technology: GPRS, 3G and Handsets
Consolidation, convergence and competitionCalls for consolidation in the European mobile market grow louder by the week and four-operator markets look increasingly challenged. Now, those mobile operators that have already built scale seem to be suggesting that there is no option but to expand yet further through diversification.
It is testament to Telstra’s aggressive approach to mobile broadband that an operator in a country of just over 23 million people should rank in the top ten operators worldwide in terms of LTE subscriber numbers. Mike Wright, Telstra’s executive director for networks and access technologies talks to Telecoms.com about the firm’s plans for further enhancing its LTE operation with fresh spectrum and LTE-Advanced capabilities.
Jonathan Bell, VP of Marketing at OpenCloud, discusses how policy and pricing are just two dimensions along which telecoms operators can differentiate their propositions. By adding a third dimension, the service behaviour itself, operators can define and bring true innovation to the market that surpasses the traditional approaches of the past, he says.
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With summer supposedly fast approaching, many look to trim some fat and get in shape for the sunny months. The Informer has never been a huge fan of gyms; in fact his favourite machine in the gym is the one that sells chocolate. Telefonica’s UK arm O2, is one business that is looking to get lean for the holidays, though, and this week it announced that it is to trim 3,500 UK employees.