Nokia Corp., the world's top mobile phone maker, said Thursday its profits fell 69 percent in the fourth quarter as the world economic downturn slowed handset sales.
Net profit was euro576 million ($743.62 million), down from euro1.84 billion in the same period in 2007.
Sales dropped 19.5 percent to euro12.7 billion ($16.4 billion), from euro15.8 billion.
The results came in below expectations, sending Nokia shares down 4 percent in Helsinki to euro9.82 ($12.68).
The Finnish company gave a bleak outlook for the industry, saying it expects global mobile device volumes to drop 10 percent in 2009 compared to last year. Last month, it predicted a 5-percent decrease.
Chief Executive Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo said the industry has been hit by "weaker consumer confidence, unprecedented currency volatility and credit tightness."
"We are taking action to reduce overall costs and to preserve our strong capital structure. This is clearly our top priority in the current economic environment," Kallasvuo said.
The company said it would slash costs at its handset unit by euro700 million annually, but didn't give any details.
Nokia shipped 113 million handsets in last three months of 2008, down 15 percent from the same period a year earlier. As a result, its share of the global handset market fell to 37 percent, down from 38 percent in the previous quarter and 40 percent in the fourth quarter of 2007.
The company said it expects to maintain its current market share in the first three months of 2009, and maintains its target of increasing market share in the full year.
"From an operational and structural perspective Nokia is still in a very good position," said Neil Mawston, a telecom analyst at Strategy Analytics in London. "It has a very efficient very effective supply chain."
He added, however, that Nokia's product portfolio is "looking relatively weak," especially in smart phones, where it is losing ground to Apple Inc.
A higher proportion of lower-end phones continued to push down the closely watched average selling price of Nokia handsets. It was euro71 in the quarter, down 14 percent from euro83 in same period a year earlier, but only 1 percent lower than in the third quarter of 2008.
Nokia said it sold less handsets in all regions, including China where sales dropped the most in the quarter — by 36 percent compared to the same period in 2007.
Earlier Thursday, South Korea's LG Electronics Inc. — one of Nokia's main rivals — said its mobile phone shipments grew 8 percent in the fourth quarter, though the company swung to a net loss because of other units.
One bright spot in Nokia's report was Nokia Siemens Networks, which supplies equipment for fixed and mobile networks. The joint venture with Germany's Siemens AG, saw operating profit grow 15.4 percent to euro225 million in the quarter. By contrast, Nokia's key mobile device unit reported a 61-percent drop in operating profit
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Apple iPhone 3G vs RIM BlackBerry Storm Mobile
A mobile phone review balancing the Apple iPhone 3G and RIM BlackBerry Storm in the easiest terms. The two smartphones are the hottest devices on the market.
Which smartphone is better? Our Apple iPhone 3G vs RIM BlackBerry Storm is based on simple everyday features for mobile phone users. Both phones have their pros and cons. One mobile device does not truly win over the other.
The smartphones are nearly alike as a multimedia phone. They both have breathtaking audio, video, photos, games, and include applications. Both have multi-touch screen capabilities.
The Internet portion of the phones is different. The BlackBerry Storm includes additional mobile applications such as Lotus Notes and Novell GroupWise. Each phone runs on a different mobile operating system.
The two smartphones have an Internet Web browser, personal e-mail, and Exchange. However, the Apple iPhone has Wi-Fi connectivity which the BlackBerry Storm lacks.
RIM BlackBerry Storm has a better 3.2 megapixel camera which features flash, auto focus, and video recording. The iPhone has a 2 megapixel camera and lacks all the additional features including flash auto focus and video recording capabilities.
Apple iPhone comes with either 8GB or 16GB of memory. The Storm comes with 1GB eMMC preloaded and also includes an 8GB micoSD card. The BlackBerry device is expandable to 16GB microSD.
Unpredictably, display size and resolution are different. The BlackBerry mobile has a 3.2 inch display running at 480x360 pixels. The iPhone display is 3.5 inches with a 480x320 pixel resolution.
We also calculated the weight of each smartphone while the battery was in the device. Storm weighs in about 5.5 ounces while the iPhone is 4.7 ounces.
Physical dimensions are nearly the same. The Storm is 4.4x2.4x0.6 inches while Apple's smartphone is 4.5x2.4x0.5 inches. As you can see, they are both virtually the same size.
Battery life is somewhat fascinating. The Storm has 360 hours standby and 5.5 hours talk time. However, the iPhone has 300 hours standby and 10 hours talk time running on 2G. This is a big difference in the two phones.
In a nutshell, it pretty much comes down to this. If you buy the iPhone, you don't get the extra camera and video recording features. If you buy the BlackBerry Storm, you don't get Wi-Fi capabilities.
The two smartphones do offer genuine support and each have their own online app store. The RIM BlackBerry app store is fairly new. This article was only intended to compare the phone features and not their app store support options
Which smartphone is better? Our Apple iPhone 3G vs RIM BlackBerry Storm is based on simple everyday features for mobile phone users. Both phones have their pros and cons. One mobile device does not truly win over the other.
The smartphones are nearly alike as a multimedia phone. They both have breathtaking audio, video, photos, games, and include applications. Both have multi-touch screen capabilities.
The Internet portion of the phones is different. The BlackBerry Storm includes additional mobile applications such as Lotus Notes and Novell GroupWise. Each phone runs on a different mobile operating system.
The two smartphones have an Internet Web browser, personal e-mail, and Exchange. However, the Apple iPhone has Wi-Fi connectivity which the BlackBerry Storm lacks.
RIM BlackBerry Storm has a better 3.2 megapixel camera which features flash, auto focus, and video recording. The iPhone has a 2 megapixel camera and lacks all the additional features including flash auto focus and video recording capabilities.
Apple iPhone comes with either 8GB or 16GB of memory. The Storm comes with 1GB eMMC preloaded and also includes an 8GB micoSD card. The BlackBerry device is expandable to 16GB microSD.
Unpredictably, display size and resolution are different. The BlackBerry mobile has a 3.2 inch display running at 480x360 pixels. The iPhone display is 3.5 inches with a 480x320 pixel resolution.
We also calculated the weight of each smartphone while the battery was in the device. Storm weighs in about 5.5 ounces while the iPhone is 4.7 ounces.
Physical dimensions are nearly the same. The Storm is 4.4x2.4x0.6 inches while Apple's smartphone is 4.5x2.4x0.5 inches. As you can see, they are both virtually the same size.
Battery life is somewhat fascinating. The Storm has 360 hours standby and 5.5 hours talk time. However, the iPhone has 300 hours standby and 10 hours talk time running on 2G. This is a big difference in the two phones.
In a nutshell, it pretty much comes down to this. If you buy the iPhone, you don't get the extra camera and video recording features. If you buy the BlackBerry Storm, you don't get Wi-Fi capabilities.
The two smartphones do offer genuine support and each have their own online app store. The RIM BlackBerry app store is fairly new. This article was only intended to compare the phone features and not their app store support options
Swan Telecom to roll out mobile services by second quarter
Swan Telecom, a part of the diversified Mumbai-based Dynamix Balwas Group, says it will end all controversies surrounding it by rolling out second generation (2G) GSM mobile phone services anytime between April and June.
"We received spectrum for 13 circles from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and we will roll out our services between April and June," Dynamix Balwas marketing vice president Ruth Varsulkar told IANS.
Swan Telecom kicked off a row after it received space in the 2G spectrum, as it did not have a single subscriber or any experience in the telecom sector. The 13 circles include prime zones such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Mumbai.
The controversy spiralled after the company went on to sell a 45-percent stake to the UAE-based Etisalat for $900 million, taking the company's book value to $2 billion - even before it had launched its services.
Communications Minister A. Raja was charged with flouting the regulator's norms in allocating of 2G spectrum on preferential treatment to Swan and another new entrant, Unitech Wireless.
The now-estranged government ally, the Communist Party of India-Marxist, questioned the government's "first-come first-served" principle and the resultant alleged loss of Rs.60,000 crore (Rs.600 billion/$13.2 billion) to the exchequer.
The minister has since claimed that the allocation of spectrum was purely based on the regulator's policies and clarified that both Swan and Unitech had merely diluted their stake and that it wasn't an outright sale.
Swan Telecom said all controversies will be eventually put to rest. "We are serious, long-term players. Everyone will get the answer once we are in the field. We will prove ourselves once we launch our product," said Varsulkar.
She also said the company would most likely share infrastructure to save on operating costs.
Another company official, requesting anonymity, said the entire controversy was the handiwork of a cartel operating against new players. "Everybody here is insecure, and it takes little to shake them."
Swan Telecom's holding company, Dynamix Balwas, has several business verticals - realty, hospitality, dairy and more recently, telecom.
The group also owns the property that Le Royal Meridien hotel operates near Mumbai's international airport. Dynamix is an equal partnership between Mumbai businessmen Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka.
"We received spectrum for 13 circles from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and we will roll out our services between April and June," Dynamix Balwas marketing vice president Ruth Varsulkar told IANS.
Swan Telecom kicked off a row after it received space in the 2G spectrum, as it did not have a single subscriber or any experience in the telecom sector. The 13 circles include prime zones such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Mumbai.
The controversy spiralled after the company went on to sell a 45-percent stake to the UAE-based Etisalat for $900 million, taking the company's book value to $2 billion - even before it had launched its services.
Communications Minister A. Raja was charged with flouting the regulator's norms in allocating of 2G spectrum on preferential treatment to Swan and another new entrant, Unitech Wireless.
The now-estranged government ally, the Communist Party of India-Marxist, questioned the government's "first-come first-served" principle and the resultant alleged loss of Rs.60,000 crore (Rs.600 billion/$13.2 billion) to the exchequer.
The minister has since claimed that the allocation of spectrum was purely based on the regulator's policies and clarified that both Swan and Unitech had merely diluted their stake and that it wasn't an outright sale.
Swan Telecom said all controversies will be eventually put to rest. "We are serious, long-term players. Everyone will get the answer once we are in the field. We will prove ourselves once we launch our product," said Varsulkar.
She also said the company would most likely share infrastructure to save on operating costs.
Another company official, requesting anonymity, said the entire controversy was the handiwork of a cartel operating against new players. "Everybody here is insecure, and it takes little to shake them."
Swan Telecom's holding company, Dynamix Balwas, has several business verticals - realty, hospitality, dairy and more recently, telecom.
The group also owns the property that Le Royal Meridien hotel operates near Mumbai's international airport. Dynamix is an equal partnership between Mumbai businessmen Shahid Balwa and Vinod Goenka.
Monday, January 5, 2009
RCom starts GSM mobile in Mumbai; offers Rs 900 free talktime
In a move that could trigger another tariff war among mobile operators, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communication today launched GSM
services in Mumbai and offered free talk-time worth Rs 900 spread over three months.
"New subscribers would get Rs 10 talk-time every day for the first 90 days and has offered tariffs of Re one a minute for local calls and STD would cost Rs 1.50 per minute on any network," Dinesh Gulati, head of Western region, said.
After consuming Rs 10 during the day, the subscribers can use top up cards with denominations ranging between Rs 10 to Rs 500 with the same tariffs.
When contacted Ambani said, "In 2003, Reliance changed the face of the telecom sector in India. Through our nationwide GSM launch coupled with company's continued focus on our number one CDMA Network, we will once again endeavour to re-write the rules of the industry by offering an unbeatable coverage, quality services and above all the value for their money."
Over and above the free-talk time, the Reliance GSM customers will get unlimited calling on Reliance network (both GSM and CDMA) absolutely free between 10 PM to 6 AM through out Mumbai, Maharashtra and Goa, giving access to seven million Reliance phones in the region.
The new GSM SIM cards would be available for Rs 25 with a validity of six months, Gulati said, adding the initial plan has been designed keeping in mind the subscribers in sub-Rs 300 mobile expenses.
He said the company was working out various other pre-paid tariff plans and would announce during the next three months.
services in Mumbai and offered free talk-time worth Rs 900 spread over three months.
"New subscribers would get Rs 10 talk-time every day for the first 90 days and has offered tariffs of Re one a minute for local calls and STD would cost Rs 1.50 per minute on any network," Dinesh Gulati, head of Western region, said.
After consuming Rs 10 during the day, the subscribers can use top up cards with denominations ranging between Rs 10 to Rs 500 with the same tariffs.
When contacted Ambani said, "In 2003, Reliance changed the face of the telecom sector in India. Through our nationwide GSM launch coupled with company's continued focus on our number one CDMA Network, we will once again endeavour to re-write the rules of the industry by offering an unbeatable coverage, quality services and above all the value for their money."
Over and above the free-talk time, the Reliance GSM customers will get unlimited calling on Reliance network (both GSM and CDMA) absolutely free between 10 PM to 6 AM through out Mumbai, Maharashtra and Goa, giving access to seven million Reliance phones in the region.
The new GSM SIM cards would be available for Rs 25 with a validity of six months, Gulati said, adding the initial plan has been designed keeping in mind the subscribers in sub-Rs 300 mobile expenses.
He said the company was working out various other pre-paid tariff plans and would announce during the next three months.
DoT working on Mobile Number Portability to meet June timeline
Working towards meeting timeline of June 2009, Department of telecom will shortly issue clarifications to the bidders on the Mobile
Number Portability norms, after which it will start
accepting applications from the prospective firms to act as agencies for porting numbers.
The Government has already held the pre-bid conference last month and is about to issue clarifications queries of the operators on the same. The bids are scheduled to be opened on February 5, said an official. The prospective bidders will act as clearing houses and database for the MNP system.
The implementation roadmap for MNP is for Metros and category A circles by middle of 2009 and in the entire country by the end of 2009.
DoT is also likely to take a decision shortly if it is in the ambit of existing norms to allow users to shift between GSM and CDMA services of the same operator before the full-fledged Mobile Number Portability starts between two operators.
The intra-operator MNP is possible with two operators in the Indian context -- Reliance Communications and Tatas, who have both GSM and CDMA operations. While RCom has announced its pan-India GSM services recently, Tatas do have spectrum for GSM service but are yet to start the service.
Tatas have already sided with the GSM operators on this issue, who have opposed the intra-operator portability.
accepting applications from the prospective firms to act as agencies for porting numbers.
The Government has already held the pre-bid conference last month and is about to issue clarifications queries of the operators on the same. The bids are scheduled to be opened on February 5, said an official. The prospective bidders will act as clearing houses and database for the MNP system.
The implementation roadmap for MNP is for Metros and category A circles by middle of 2009 and in the entire country by the end of 2009.
DoT is also likely to take a decision shortly if it is in the ambit of existing norms to allow users to shift between GSM and CDMA services of the same operator before the full-fledged Mobile Number Portability starts between two operators.
The intra-operator MNP is possible with two operators in the Indian context -- Reliance Communications and Tatas, who have both GSM and CDMA operations. While RCom has announced its pan-India GSM services recently, Tatas do have spectrum for GSM service but are yet to start the service.
Tatas have already sided with the GSM operators on this issue, who have opposed the intra-operator portability.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
iPhone disconnects in India
India may have the world’s fastest growing wireless market, but Apple (AAPL) didn’t set its hopes particularly high when it launched the iPhone 3G there in August. It reportedly shipped only 50,000 units to its partners on the subcontinent, with plans to double that number by the end of the year.
If so, those partners may have a lot of unsold iPhones on their hands come January. According to a long postmortem published this week in the Delhi-based newspaper Mint, Apple has sold only 11,000 iPhones in India, a country of 1.14 billion that buys 8 to 10 million cellphones a month.
“IPhone’s launch in India has been dubbed the biggest failure of a top-notch brand from a well regarded company in recent times,” wrote Priyanka Mehra and Shauvik Ghosh in a piece that underscores the difficulty of adapting Apple’s U.S.-based smartphone strategy to markets around the world.
Price, according to the authors, is only part of the problem. Although most Indians buy cheap cellphones on a pre-paid basis, there were plenty of potential customers who could afford the 31,000 rupees ($716 at the time) that Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar were charging for the 8GB iPhone. According to Mint, Nokia (NOK), Samsung and RIM (RIMM) are all doing good business in India selling smartphones that cost even more.
But Steve Jobs had announced before the launch that Apple would be priced at $199 globally — less than 10,000 rupees — a promise he couldn’t deliver on in India because local cellphone companies don’t subsidize cellphones with lock-in clauses the way carriers routinely do in the United States and Europe.
“This built a false hope in the minds of those consumers who wanted to buy it and turned away those who could have actually bought it,” Prathap Suthan, creative director of advertising agency Cheil Communications India, told Mint.
Moreover, he says, Bharti and Vodafone, lacking experience in the complex Indian retail environment, dropped the ball in terms of marketing and distribution. By selling iPhones exclusively at their own outlets, they’ve antagonized the big retail chains that dominate the market in India.
“A brand like Apple need not be told that an iconic product needs iconic advertising, a solid marketing push,” says Suthan, “The company failed to strike a connect with Indian consumers.”
If so, those partners may have a lot of unsold iPhones on their hands come January. According to a long postmortem published this week in the Delhi-based newspaper Mint, Apple has sold only 11,000 iPhones in India, a country of 1.14 billion that buys 8 to 10 million cellphones a month.
“IPhone’s launch in India has been dubbed the biggest failure of a top-notch brand from a well regarded company in recent times,” wrote Priyanka Mehra and Shauvik Ghosh in a piece that underscores the difficulty of adapting Apple’s U.S.-based smartphone strategy to markets around the world.
Price, according to the authors, is only part of the problem. Although most Indians buy cheap cellphones on a pre-paid basis, there were plenty of potential customers who could afford the 31,000 rupees ($716 at the time) that Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar were charging for the 8GB iPhone. According to Mint, Nokia (NOK), Samsung and RIM (RIMM) are all doing good business in India selling smartphones that cost even more.
But Steve Jobs had announced before the launch that Apple would be priced at $199 globally — less than 10,000 rupees — a promise he couldn’t deliver on in India because local cellphone companies don’t subsidize cellphones with lock-in clauses the way carriers routinely do in the United States and Europe.
“This built a false hope in the minds of those consumers who wanted to buy it and turned away those who could have actually bought it,” Prathap Suthan, creative director of advertising agency Cheil Communications India, told Mint.
Moreover, he says, Bharti and Vodafone, lacking experience in the complex Indian retail environment, dropped the ball in terms of marketing and distribution. By selling iPhones exclusively at their own outlets, they’ve antagonized the big retail chains that dominate the market in India.
“A brand like Apple need not be told that an iconic product needs iconic advertising, a solid marketing push,” says Suthan, “The company failed to strike a connect with Indian consumers.”
Saturday, September 6, 2008
New Strategy by Hotspot and other retailers
Organised mobile retailers like HotSpot and Mobile NXT have found a new way to deal with competition from mom & pop stores: make neighbourhood retailers their franchisees to sell mobile phones and accessories under their brand.
Currently, more than 70% of the mobile retail sector is unorganised and market analysts believe there is a huge potential for the franchise model. “The return on investment (RoI) for the franchisee is somewhere around 60-65%.
It will allow us to expand our presence and enter deep into the cities,” says HotSpot CEO Sanjeev Mahajan. HotSpot has recently adopted the franchise model with 25 stores operational in Delhi alone and has plans to expand to 100 such stores besides the 400 company-owned, company-operated (co-co) stores across the country.
“Customer experience and pricing is the crux of this business. Therefore, we provide stock management, professional training for the in-store sales team, and an after-sales customer support at all our franchised stores. The role of the franchisee is restricted to the operational level,” says Mobile NXT CEO Vijay Menon.
Mobile NXT adopted the franchise model in tier-II and tier-III cities across India in 2007. The company operates more than 55 stores all over the country.
Mr Menon, however, concedes that the franchise model in mobile retailing is difficult to adopt since there is no uniqueness in the product and the return on investment is not very attractive.
That is why players like Subhiksha and Mobile Store are refusing to join the bandwagon. They believe the franchise model is not profitable at this stage, given the low profit margins and low market penetration.
“We are concentrating on a co-co model based on pricing. We don’t think franchise model is the way to go, since the business already accounts for low margins; expanding through franchise would dent the margins further,” says Subhiksha president-marketing Mohit Khattar. Subhiksha operates the largest chain of mobile stores with around 1,300 stores all over the country.
Mobile Store CEO Rajiv Agarwal also feels that the franchise model in the current scenario does not hold much ground. “There is the risk of our brand value being diluted. This is a business where you cannot allow your service proposition to get diluted,” says he. Mobile Store has significant presence in the country with more than 800 stores.
However, RPG Cellucom head-marketing Biswajit Pandey feels that with improving margins and marketing strategies, the franchise model may take the front stage in future. The company currently operates over 25 stores.
“It’s a win-win situation since it allows rapid expansion and presence in local areas for the franchiser and an opportunity for the traditional retailer to enter the newfound trend of organised retail. Moreover, the operational costs in case of franchise model is low in comparison to co-co model, giving both the parties a better RoI,” says global management consulting firm Technopak chairman Arvind Singhal.
Currently, more than 70% of the mobile retail sector is unorganised and market analysts believe there is a huge potential for the franchise model. “The return on investment (RoI) for the franchisee is somewhere around 60-65%.
It will allow us to expand our presence and enter deep into the cities,” says HotSpot CEO Sanjeev Mahajan. HotSpot has recently adopted the franchise model with 25 stores operational in Delhi alone and has plans to expand to 100 such stores besides the 400 company-owned, company-operated (co-co) stores across the country.
“Customer experience and pricing is the crux of this business. Therefore, we provide stock management, professional training for the in-store sales team, and an after-sales customer support at all our franchised stores. The role of the franchisee is restricted to the operational level,” says Mobile NXT CEO Vijay Menon.
Mobile NXT adopted the franchise model in tier-II and tier-III cities across India in 2007. The company operates more than 55 stores all over the country.
Mr Menon, however, concedes that the franchise model in mobile retailing is difficult to adopt since there is no uniqueness in the product and the return on investment is not very attractive.
That is why players like Subhiksha and Mobile Store are refusing to join the bandwagon. They believe the franchise model is not profitable at this stage, given the low profit margins and low market penetration.
“We are concentrating on a co-co model based on pricing. We don’t think franchise model is the way to go, since the business already accounts for low margins; expanding through franchise would dent the margins further,” says Subhiksha president-marketing Mohit Khattar. Subhiksha operates the largest chain of mobile stores with around 1,300 stores all over the country.
Mobile Store CEO Rajiv Agarwal also feels that the franchise model in the current scenario does not hold much ground. “There is the risk of our brand value being diluted. This is a business where you cannot allow your service proposition to get diluted,” says he. Mobile Store has significant presence in the country with more than 800 stores.
However, RPG Cellucom head-marketing Biswajit Pandey feels that with improving margins and marketing strategies, the franchise model may take the front stage in future. The company currently operates over 25 stores.
“It’s a win-win situation since it allows rapid expansion and presence in local areas for the franchiser and an opportunity for the traditional retailer to enter the newfound trend of organised retail. Moreover, the operational costs in case of franchise model is low in comparison to co-co model, giving both the parties a better RoI,” says global management consulting firm Technopak chairman Arvind Singhal.
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