Asia Pacific leads worldwide mobile phone sales growth in 1Q13, says Gartner

May 16, 22:10

Worldwide mobile phone sales to end users totaled nearly 426 million units in the first quarter of 2013, a slight increase of 0.7% from the same period in 2012, according to Gartner. Worldwide smartphone sales totaled 210 million units in the first quarter of 2013, up 42.9% from the first quarter of...

BlackBerry to offer BBM on Android and iOS platforms

May 15, 22:16

BlackBerry plans to offer its messenger app, BBM, to competing platforms such as Google's Android and Apple's iOS.

Nokia introduces Asha 501

May 10, 15:59

Nokia has unveiled the first of a new Asha family of smartphones, the Asha 501, targeting the sub-US$100 budget smartphone segment in emerging markets, including India, Latin America and Africa.

Nokia, BlackBerry to steal spotlight with new models or roadmaps in mid-May

May 6, 21:27

Nokia and BlackBerry will try to steal the spotlight from the market and smartphone users in mid-May as the two vendors will unveil either new smartphones or product roadmaps in huge fanfares.

Samsung takes 30% of global smartphone market in 1Q13, says DRAMeXchange

Apr 23, 12:22

In the first quarter of 2013, smartphone shipments increased steadily worldwide, with total shipments reaching 216.4 million units for a 9.4% on growth. Since the beginning of 2012, smartphone shipment figures have been up every quarter despite seasonality, indication the electronic device is here...

Nokia reports increased Lumia shipments but decreased revenues for 1Q13

Newswatch - Apr 19, 14:11

Nokia has reported that shipments of its Lumia phones increased 27% on quarter to 5.6 million units in the first quarter of 2013, reflecting increasing momentum.

Southeast Asia potential market for Taiwan-based Internet service providers, says Google Taiwan head

Apr 18, 13:38

As the population is large and Internet services as well as use of smartphones and other mobile terminal devices are growing rapidly in Southeast Asia, while there are relatively few local players, the region affords many business opportunities for Taiwan-based Internet service providers and content...

Taiwan market: Chunghwa Telecom offers App mobile push services

Apr 17, 15:40

Chunghwa Telecom (CHT) has stepped into mobile advertising by offering App mobile push services for use by businesses in Taiwan, according to the company.

China market: Alibaba launches new smartphones running on AMOS

Apr 17, 15:38

China-based e-commerce giant Alibaba Group has teamed with five local handset makers to launch six smartphones running on its home-grown AMOS (Alibaba Mobile OS). It remains to be seen if first-tier China-based smartphones vendors, including Huawei, ZTE and Lenovo will also support AMOS.

Microsoft reportedly developing Windows Blue for PC, mobile OS integration

Apr 8, 15:20

Microsoft is reportedly developing Windows Blue as an independent project that will help merge Windows (PC) with Windows Phone. Rumors have also spread that Microsoft is developing another operating system, which will serve as the next-generation Windows and will be released in October.

Web access from STBs and TVs up 138%, feature phones down 12% in 6 months, says Netbiscuits

Mar 27, 21:45

Based on the Netbiscuits Platform which handles billions of mobile Web and content impressions a month, the company believes that consumers are accessing the Web through new emerging devices and technologies such as STBs, according to research firm Netbiscuits.

Apple acquisition of WiFiSlam heating up competition for location-based indoor services, say sources

Mar 27, 14:26

Apple's recent announcement for the acquisition of WiFiSlam, an indoor GPS solutions startup, appears to have attracted much attention as the move is likely to heat up competition between Apple and Google in their race for expanding mapping technologies and related services, according to industry ob...

Taiwan market: Smartphone user monthly average data communication reaches 1,140MB, says InsightXplorer

Mar 26, 16:00

In the Taiwan market, smartphone users' data communications reach a monthly average volume of 1,140MB, according to marketing research company InsightXplorer.

Kingway Technology 2012 revenues up 80%

Mar 26, 11:35

Kingway Technology, a Taiwan-based provider of electronic map data and navigation software, brought in revenues of NT$280 million (US$9.5 million) for 2012, hiking by 80% from 2011, according to the company.

China software industry January-February revenues top CNY402 billion, says MIIT

Mar 25, 10:23

China's software industry generated revenues of CNY402.263 billion (US$64.57 billion) in January-February 2013, growing 25.4% on year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).

Commentary: Who would buy the Panasonic handset business unit?

Mar 20, 22:09

Japan-based Panasonic reportedly plans to sell its handset business unit. Industry observers believe China-based firms might be interested, but the chances of the Japan vendor reaching a deal to sell the unit are low.

Digitimes Research: More software developers join Android camp

Mar 20, 16:03

More and more software developers and free software projects are willing to join development for the Android platform in view of the dynamic shipment growth demonstrated by Android-based smartphones over the past quarters, during which Android smartphones managed to take up a 70% share of the global...

Taiwan market: Amazon likely to launch e-book services

Mar 18, 14:32

Amazon has passed examination by Taiwan's National Communications Commission for its Kindle Fire, 7-inch Kindle Fire HD and 8.9-inch Kindle Fire HD to be launched in the Taiwan market, signaling that Amazon may be preparing to launch e-book services, according to market analysts.

Google executive reshuffle may affect relationship with handset brands, say sources

Mar 15, 15:37

Google's Android chief, Andy Rubin, has stepped down from his current post. If Rubin is assigned to strengthen in-house handset products, it may affect Google's relationship with other handset brands, according to industry observers.

Tablets will generate 35% of US$25 billion app revenues in 2013, says ABI Research

Mar 13, 15:00

Tablet apps will generate US$8.8 billion in revenues in 2013, compared to the US$16.4 billion expected from smartphone apps, according to ABI Research. Of the combined US$25 billion, 65% will come from Apple's iOS ecosystem, 27% from Google's Android, and the remaining 8% from the other mobile platf...

Sony Mobile makes headway with Xperia Z; to move to other platforms

Mar 11, 14:08

Sales of Sony Mobile Communications' new high-end flagship smartphone, the Xperia Z, have been successful, which could help the vendor ramp up sales of its entry-level to mid-range Android smartphones as well as to speed up its deployment in other mobile platforms, according to sources in the handset...

Amazon much-fanfared smartphone may be delayed, say sources

Mar 11, 12:23

Market rumors have indicated that Amazon may not be able to release its first smartphone in the second quarter of 2013 as originally scheduled, as the production progress at its manufacturing partner, Foxconn International Holdings (FIH), has not been as smooth as expected, according to sources at...

Too late for China to develop own mobile operating systems, say Taiwan makers

Mar 7, 11:11

While China Academy of Telecommunication Research under the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in its white paper calls for China's development of own operating systems for use in smartphones, tablets and other mobile terminal devices to lessen existing heavy reliance on Google Android,...

China handset makers hope to reduce reliance on Android

Mar 6, 22:23

The China Academy of Telecommunication Research for the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has published a white paper stating that China's handset industry has been relying heavily on the Android platform. In fact, China's handset industry has been hoping to reduce its reliance on Google's...

Smartphones expected to outship feature phones for first time in 2013, says IDC

Mar 5, 15:40

More smartphones are forecast to be shipped globally than feature phones in 2013, the first such occurrence in the mobile phone market on an annual basis, according to IDC. Handset vendors will ship 918.6 million smartphones this year, or 50.1% of the total mobile phone shipments worldwide.

Mobeam and ams: Smartphone barcodes will finally be readable by all POS laser scanners

Mar 4, 22:25

Mobeam and ams AG have announced they have formed a partnership that will accelerate the ability of smartphones to transmit barcoded content that can be read by all point-of-sale (POS) laser scanners. The partnership will provide an integrated solution consisting of ams' light sensors and Mobeam's...

Tizen and others join competition for mobile OS market

Mar 4, 21:34

Mobile device OS (operating system) operators including Tizen, Firefox OS, Ubuntu Touch and Sailfish OS all showcased their platforms and terminal products at the recently concluded Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013 eyeing the growing mobile device OS market, according to industry sources.

MWC 2013: Qualcomm, MediaTek not ready to develop 8-core smartphone CPUs

Feb 27, 11:19

Qualcomm and MediaTek appear to have temporarily suspended their respective plans to develop 8-core CPUs for smartphones based on product roadmaps revealed by the companies.

MWC 2013: Nokia launches four new mobile phones

Newswatch - Feb 26, 14:47

Nokia has announced four new smartphones – the Nokia Lumia 720, Lumia 520, Nokia 105 and Nokia 301 – at the ongoing Mobile World Congress (MWC) and has said it will strengthen its cooperation with Microsoft in the enterprise sector to bring more business customers to Windows Phone.

Acer looks to ship two million smartphones in 2013, says chairman

Feb 26, 11:58

While showcasing three new smartphones at the ongoing Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013, Acer expects its smartphone shipments to reach two million units in 2013, according to company chairman JT Wang.

Linaro to extend Linux reach to networking equipment

Feb 21, 10:50

Linaro, the not-for-profit engineering organization developing open source software for the ARM architecture, has announced the formation of the Linaro Networking Group (LNG) with 12 founding member companies including Applied Micro Circuits, ARM, Enea, Freescale Semiconductor, LSI, MontaVista, Nokia...

Android, iOS combine for 91.1% of worldwide smartphone OS market in 4Q12, says IDC

Feb 18, 11:25

Android and iOS, the number one and number two ranked smartphone operating systems (OS) worldwide, combined for 91.1% of all smartphone shipments during the fourth quarter of 2012, according to IDC. Android smartphone vendors and Apple shipped a total of 207.6 million units worldwide during the fourth...

Android powers a third of all mobile phones shipped in 4Q12, says Canalys

Feb 8, 15:24

Canalys has published its final mobile phone shipment estimates across the 50 plus countries that it tracks. The total mobile phone market, at 438.1 million units, was flat on year, while the worldwide smartphone market grew 37%. Android smartphones accounted for 34% of all phone shipments and iOS...

China market: Mobile gaming services generate nearly CNY1.7 billion in revenues in 4Q12, says Analysys

Feb 7, 11:59

Mobile gaming service operators in the China market generated total revenues of CYN1.677 billion (US$268 million) during fourth-quarter 2012, growing 24.93% sequentially and 52.54% on year, according to Analysys International.

China market: DeNA aims to be most valuable, instead of largest, social gaming platform, says executive

Feb 4, 10:40

DeNA, a leading social gaming platform in Japan with 45 million users, entered the China market in July 2011 and aims to be the most valuable social gaming platform instead of the largest one there, DeNA China CEO Wang Yong said at a speech at the Taipei Game Show which is taking place during January...

RIM introduces 2 new smartphones; changes company name to BlackBerry

Jan 31, 21:51

Research In Motion (RIM) has changed its name to BlackBerry, and has introduced two new smartphones based on the new BlackBerry 10 platform, the Z10 and Q10. The two models will be available on the market starting the end of January.

Line to maintain leading market status in Japan, Taiwan, Thailand in 2013, says NHN Japan CEO

Jan 31, 15:37

Line, a smartphone- and PC-based instant messaging application developed by Japan-based NHN Japan, aims to maintain its leading market share for mobile instant messaging in Japan, Taiwan and Thailand and reach the largest market share in South Korea in 2013, president and CEO Akira Morikawa for NHN...

HTC to unveil M7 in London in February, say sources

Jan 29, 14:04

HTC plans to unveil its new M7 smartphone, a flagship model for the first half of 2013, in London in early February, according to sources at the supply chain.

Strong demand for smartphones, heated competition characterize global handset market in 4Q12, says IDC

Jan 28, 11:24

The worldwide mobile phone market grew 1.9% on year in the fourth quarter of 2012, as strong holiday smartphone sales raised shipments of these devices to levels nearly equal to those of feature phones, according to IDC. Vendors shipped a total of 482.5 million mobile phones in the fourth quarter compared...

China market: Brands to introduce quad-core smartphones before Lunar New Year

Jan 23, 22:06

Many brands in China such as Huawei and ZTE plan to introduce quad-core smartphones that adopt MediaTek's MT6589 or Qualcomm's MSM8x25Q solutions before the Lunar New Year holidays with retail prices around CNY1,000-1,500/unit (US$160-241/unit). Some tier-two and tier-three brands have set retail prices...

Taiwan market: Mobile advertising valued at NT$2.64 billion in 2012, says FIND

Jan 23, 15:40

Providers of mobile advertising services on smartphones, tablets and other mobile terminal devices generated estimated total revenues of NT$2.64 billion (US$89.5 million) in 2012, growing 9.5% from 2011, and the revenues will increase 22.3% to NT$3.23 billion in 2013, according to Foreseeing Innovative...

Taiwan market: WeChat targeted for 80% penetration of mobile device users

Jan 22, 15:30

China-based Tencent launched its WeChat mobile messenger service in the Taiwan market in October 2012 and aims at reaching 80% of mobile device users, according to the company.

Android platform to continue dominating 5-inch and larger smartphone market in 2013

Jan 21, 15:44

Google's Android platform will continue to dominate the 5-inch and larger smartphone segment in 2013, while other platforms such as Apple's iOS, Windows Phone, and Blackberry have yet to show support for larger displays, according to industry sources.

US consumers likely to swap traditional technology with tablets and new media in 2013, says Belkin

Jan 17, 20:39

Approximately 39% of US adults between the ages of 18-34 would consider replacing their TV cable and satellite providers with a streaming media subscription service in 2013, according to consumer electronics manufacturer Belkin.

Compal Communications aims to ship 10 million smartphones in 2013

Jan 17, 13:53

Compal Communications expects its shipments of smartphones to reach 10 million units in 2013, powered by the fast growing smartphone industry in China and its growing number of clients, according to company chairman Ray Chen.

Bestec Power sees continual sales growth in 2013

Jan 15, 11:36

Taiwan-based switching power supply maker Bestec Power Electronics expects its sales for 2013 to exceed the amount it posted in 2012 during which revenues soared 68.2% to NT$1.93 billion (US$66.72 million), according to the company.

CES 2013: More new multi-core chipset solutions unveiled, heating up competition

Jan 11, 14:47

Chipset vendors including Nvidia, Qualcomm, Samsung Electronics and ST-Ericsson have all unveiled their new multi-core solutions for mobile devices and other applications at CES 2013, heating up competition in the segment in the year, according to industry sources.

China market: 2012 mobile Internet-access revenues, users up 84.2%, 30.1%, says Analysys

Jan 10, 14:09

Operators of mobile Internet services in the China market generated total revenues of CNY158.8 billion (US$25.17 billion) in 2012, hiking 84.2% from 2011, while the corresponding active users grew 30.1% to 561.20 million , according to Analysys International.