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Nokia launches five new models to stave off rivals


SINGAPORE: Finland's Nokia, the world's largest mobile phone maker, launched five new models yesterday, including one billed as the world's smallest 3G phone, as it seeks to claw back market share from rivals.

Nokia's new models have been awaited by analysts and investors after the Finnish company, whose handsets were the market standard for years, warned in early April that it could not keep pace with robust market growth due to a lack of attractive phones in the middle part of its portfolio.

Among the latest models are a 6260 smartphone with swivel screen, a 6630 third-generation (3G) phone, which Nokia says is the world's smallest 3G camera phone.

It also unveiled a 6170 “clamshell” camera-phone and two low-end models, the 2650 and the 2600.


A model displaying Nokia’s new 6630 mobile handset which was unveiled in Singapore yesterday. — APpic
Rivals have been faster to market handsets boasting high-resolution displays or cameras and other features that have eroded Nokia's dominant market share position.

Simon Beresford-Wylie, senior vice-president for Asia-Pacific at Nokia, said he expected “dynamic” growth in regional mobile subscribers, estimating that by 2007 for every one fixed line user there will be more than two mobile phone users.

By 2007, Nokia expects about 300 million new subscribers to come from growth markets in the Asia-Pacific region, he told an industry conference.

He said he expected the number of third-generation networks to rise from six wideband-CDMA (code division multiple access) networks in the Asia-Pacific to 20 by 2005.

But some industry observers who have seen the new handsets said last Thursday the products would not inspire the ardour needed for the Finnish firm to recoup market share.

“The mobile operators want something from Nokia that really smokes. This isn't it,” one industry source said in Helsinki. According to research group Gartner, Nokia's market share plummeted to 28.9% in the first quarter of 2004 from 34.6% in the year-ago period.

In contrast, US-based Motorola Inc, the world's second-largest mobile phone maker, and third-ranked South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co Ltd both boosted their market shares in the first quarter to 16.4% and 12.5% respectively.

Nokia forecast in April a sharper-than-expected fall in second-quarter earnings. – Reuters

http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2004/6/15/business/8211639&sec=business