Handsets

New York Times: T-Mobile will be first with Android phone

Lynnette Luna — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 09:10:24 -0400

The New York Times is reporting that T-Mobile USA will be the first operator to offer a mobile phone based on Google's Android platform. The newspaper, citing sources briefed on the company's plans, said the phone will be HTC's Dream, and is anticipated to go on sale in the U.S. before Christmas and maybe as early as October. The release date of the device depends on how early the FCC certifies both the Google software and the HTC device. Executives at T-Mobile and Google hope to make an announcement by September so the two companies can make a splash for the holiday season.

The "unofficial" blog T-Mobile online reported earlier that T-Mobile would begin taking preorders for HTC's Android-based device on Sept. 17. T-Mobile executives declined to comment on the news, only saying it was on track to offer it in the fourth quarter. HTC, which is expected to be the only device maker to have an Android phone on the market this year, also declined to comment.

Earlier this week, HTC denied a report claiming it will be forced to delay its Android handset. Last week Trip Chowdhry of Global Equities Research said that HTC was struggling to incorporate the Android feature set and the first Android phone--originally slated to debut in the fourth quarter--would not make its debut until after the first of the year. But HTC reiterates that it remains on schedule--moreover, a new video posted to YouTube purports to demonstrate the company's Android-based Dream device, which boasts a fold-out QWERTY keyboard as well as an orientation sensor that automatically flips the screen layout in tandem with the user's movements.

For more:
- read The New York Times

Related stories:
HTC denies Android delay nightmare. HTC story
Rumor mill: T-Mobile will presale HTC Dream Sept. 17. T-Mobile story

Mobile phone sales will reach 1.28B in 2008

Sue Marek — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 11:07:08 -0400

Research firm Gartner says that worldwide mobile phone sales will top 1.28 billion units in 2008, an 11 percent increase over last year. Handset sales reached 294.3 million in first quarter 2008 and the analyst firm expects sales in the second quarter to be between 300 million and 305 million. For the third quarter, Gartner expects a slight increase in sales over second quarter but only slight because both Motorola and LG issued warnings about a sequential drop in sales.

Gartner predicts handset makers will rely more on emerging markets to reach their growth projections. The firm expects Asia-Pacific to have a 17.9 percent increase in mobile phone sales in 2008 reaching 472.5 million. Meanwhile, Western Europe will experience a 1.5 percent decline from last year to reach 188 million in sales. North America will have a decline of 5.3 percent to reach 185.7 million in sales.

Avian Securities analyst Matt Thornton concurs with Gartner. He believes that mobile phone sales will reach nearly 1.3 billion units in 2008 and average selling prices (ASP) for phones will decline 8 percent year-over-year as sales shift to higher growth emerging markets.

For more:
- see this press release

Related articles:
Handset sales slowing in U.S. amid worsening economy
Handset sales sluggish thanks to weak economy

Report: Handset shipments topped 287M in Q2

Sue Marek — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 12:09:25 -0400

Strategy Analytics says that global mobile handset shipments grew 15 percent year-over-year to reach 297 million in second quarter 2008. Analyst Bonny Joy says that despite the economic gloom, handset sales remain robust in emerging markets. In addition, the research firm found that Apple's global handset shipments fell in the second quarter to 0.7 million from 1.7 million units in first quarter. Release

Motorola ships 28.1 million handsets in 2Q

Sue Marek — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:32:07 -0400

Motorola surprised analysts by posting a second-quarter net income of $4 million, up from a net loss of $28 million a year ago. Revenue fell 7.4 percent to $8.08 billion and the company expects its third-quarter earnings to be flat.

The handset maker continues to lose market share, shipping just 28.1 million handsets during second quarter, a decrease of 21 percent from the first quarter. Although some predicted Motorola would lose its stature as the third largest maker of cell phones behind Nokia and Samsung, it held onto its ranking. In second quarter Nokia shipped 122 million devices and Samsung shipped 45.7 million handsets. Meanwhile, LG shipped 27.7 million and appears to be quickly closing the gap.

Motorola is in the midst of a major restructuring. Earlier this week it announce it was dividing its Home & Networks Mobility Group into three separate businesses, a move that many believe may make the businesses easier to sell off.

For more:
- here's a round up the telecom infrastructure vendor revenues - chart
- see this article (sub. req.)
- see this MarketWatch article

Related articles:
Motorola restructures--again
Motorola slashes 150 R&D jobs

Samsung ships 45.7M phones in 2Q

Sue Marek — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 12:29:59 -0400

Samsung, the No. 2 maker of cell phones, is feeling the pressure of the economic slowdown. The company reported second quarter earnings of $2.1 billion, up 51 percent over the same quarter a year ago but its cell phone division reported an operating profit margin of 12.8 percent, which is down from 15.5 percent in the first quarter. The company shipped 45.7 million units during the quarter, up from 37.4 million in the year ago quarter but slightly below the 46.3 million it shipped in the first quarter.

Samsung executives said that they expect the cell phone profits to remain under pressure and the company's year-on-year growth will likely slow in the second half of the year. Nevertheless, the company does expect to meet its target of shipping 200 million units in 2008.

For more:
- see this article (sub. req.)

Related stories:
Samsung's net rises 37 percent
Nokia's outlook for 2008 is good, market share is up

Head of prominent cancer research institute issues cell-phone warning

Lynnette Luna — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:00:26 -0400

The age-old debate over whether cell phones cause cancer has reared its ugly head again as Dr. Robert Herberman, director of the prominent University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, issued an unusual warning to some 3,000 faculty and staff, urging them to limit cell phone use because of the possible risk of cancer. The warning is contrary to several studies that have said no link exists between the two, but Herberman said he is raising the alarm because of early unpublished data, and it takes too long to obtain answers from science and believes people should act now, especially children.

"Really at the heart of my concern is that we shouldn't wait for a definitive study to come out, but err on the side of being safe rather than sorry later," Herberman told the AP. No other major academic cancer research institutions have issued such a warning.

For more:
- read AP

Related story:
Researchers disagree over cell phone safety findings. Cancer research story

Motorola sues former exec over employment with Apple

Lynnette Luna — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 11:40:28 -0400

Motorola is suing a former executive, claiming he violated a two-year non-compete agreement by becoming the head of global iPhone sales for Apple and recruiting two other former Motorola employees.

Motorola filed the suit against Mike Fenger, who quit in March as senior vice president of mobile devices for Europe, Middle East and Africa to join Apple. Fenger was part of a mass exodus of executives this past spring as the company's handset business continues to deteriorate. The suit not only alleges a breach of contract but also claims Fenger used Motorola trade secrets. It's not that he stole any documents, but the information in his head seems to be enough to violate Motorola's trade secrets.

"In his new position...he cannot perform his duties for Apple without inevitably disclosing Motorola's trade secrets," the lawsuit states.

For more:
- check out the WSJ (sub. req.)

Related stories:
Motorola replaces two more executives. Motorola story
Another Motorola executive departs. Motorola story

How hot are social networking sites on mobile phones?

Lynnette Luna — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 11:20:28 -0400

According to a new survey, just 24 percent of Internet users ever visit social network sites on their mobile phones or smartphones. The survey was conducted by ICM Research and written up in a report from the London School of Economics. Dr. Leslie Haddon of the school's Economics' Media and Communications Department said the results can be interpreted two ways. One is to conclude that social networking does not dominate life online. "In fact, only 7 percent of the whole sample use the various mobile devices to do so every day," she said. "On the other hand, this figure of roughly a quarter is still substantial given that SNS (social networking sites) have been around far less time than the more established uses, such as email." Article

Mary McDowell - Top Women in Wireless

Wed, 16 Jul 2008 08:56:54 -0400

Mary McDowell

Executive vice president and chief development officer at Nokia

After spending 17 years at HP-Compaq, Mary McDowell decided to make the foray into wireless in 2004 when she joined Nokia as executive vice president and general manager of the company's enterprise solutions group. During her time there, she oversaw the development of the Nokia Eseries of mobile devices.

In her current role, she heads the corporate development office and oversees many areas including mobile software sales and marketing and IT. With Nokia's growing emphasis on applications and software, McDowell is now on the forefront of many company initiatives, including Nokia's recent $410 million acquisition of the remaining interest in Symbian and its plans to make Symbian's software into an open source platform and make it available to members for free.

GPhone speculation strikes again

Sue Marek — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 11:49:08 -0400

Just when you thought all rumors of the GPhone had been quashed for good, they strike again. TechCrunch is reporting that Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergei Bring and CEO Eric Schmidt made "nebulous" statements to Hollywood Reporter writer Dan Cox leaving some to wonder if the company is once again thinking about building a GPhone. In an article, Cox writes, "The trio of Google execs also used the opportunity to talk about the inroads the company is making with its own branded mobile phone as a replacement for the iPhone."

In addition, TechCrunch says that a source has told them that Ammunition Design Group, a San Francisco-based firm that designs computers, mobile phones and hardware for companies such as Palm, HP, Dell and others, may be working with Google to create an Android-based Google branded GPhone.

Last year Google was rumored to be developing a GPhone and was said to even have been talking to various carriers about the device. However, those rumors died down after the company in November launched its Google Android open source mobile operating system.

For more:
- see this report

Related articles:
SPOTLIGHT: Google: Still not building a Gphone
Google unveils Android, Open Handset Alliance