Samsung- the most preferred brand in France
Samsung France has stated that it has sold 10.9 million mobile phones in the country in 2010, making it the market leader with 40% percent of total units sold. The company claimed a 28.3% market share by value.
According to head of Samsung France’s mobile division, David Eberle, it aims to sell 11.5 million handsets this year, including 5 million smartphones. This will require increasing smartphone sales by a multiple of 2.5.
Citing a recent study by TNS Sofres, Eberle added that Samsung has for the first time become French consumers’ favourite brand. The group sold 18 million products of all types last year, including white goods, TVs, cameras, IT, air conditioning and solar panels.
Samsung France targets a US$4.22 billion turnover this year, in which it will introduce LED lamps. To meet its mobile phone sales objective, the company will leverage its presence in NFC technology, which features in its Nexus S, sold in pre-premiere by SFR; its Bada operating system, a new version of which will be released in June; and smartphones running other operating systems than Apple OS, such as Android on the Galaxy, Bada on the Wave, and Windows Phone 7 on the Omnia.
1/4 of mobile business workers switched to tablet devices
Over a quarter of business users surveyed by a Wi-Fi roaming provider are using a tablet, typically an iPad, for work. Most mobile employees think that in the next five years there will be just one ¼ber device.
According to researchers, tablet and smartphone use in the enterprise is being driven by the growth of cloud-based applications, in addition to the availability of these devices being reasonably priced.
The report, which drew from the experiences of more than 3,500 mobile employees at 1,100 enterprises worldwide, found a 10% decline in preference for laptops as mobile employees increasingly prefer smartphones and tablets.
The survey also found:
- 20% of mobile workers selected a Tablet as their one device of choice, while 49 percent selected the smartphone (down from 63 percent in 2010), compared to 27 percent who prefer a laptop (down from 37 percent).
- The tablet market is also experiencing phenomenal growth, especially among mobile employees. 65 percent of mobile workers surveyed reported that they use a tablet for applications like sending and receiving email, surfing the Internet, watching video content and reading electronic books, newspapers and magazines. 27 percent report that they use a tablet for work.
- 59 percent of mobile workers use Wi-Fi on their smartphone at least one hour a day. 57 percent are satisfied with their mobile operator’s network coverage but 22 percent are dissatisfied with the cellular network speed.
- 71 percent of mobile workers would go on a data diet if wireless carriers increased charges for cellular data access — 29 percent would not change their behavior mostly because their employer pays the phone bill, while 22 percent would limit use to critical access.
- 94 percent of mobile workers will troubleshoot a problem themselves, while 13 percent will not contact the IT help desk at all when they have a technical problem. These results are in line with last year’s prediction that a mobilocracy will rise in today’s workplace.
- Those 35 and older feel more productive working outside of the office, in contrast with those 34 and under who feel most productive working in the office — not the generation gap that most would expect.
Vodafone Essar to launch 3G services by this fiscal end (India)
Vodafone Essar has announced its plans to launch 3G services in a phased manner by the end of this fiscal.
According to Vodafone Essar Director (Enterprise and Carrier Business), Naveen Chopra, they have a 3G-ready network, currently in optimization which they will be launching very quickly. Presently, trials are on and the service is expected to be launched in a phased manner by March. The roll-out will be on city-wise basis and not pan-India or state-wise.
He added that the telecom firm, which recently launched fixed line data and voice services for enterprise customers or mobile corporate customers, is eyeing to double its revenue from such customers in five-years. Currently, it is in the region of 8-10% and it should be doubling in five-years. The firm has the capability of servicing enterprise customers for fixed line and the company has over 95,000 km of optical fiber and a 3G-ready network.
The company in collaboration with IT major Wipro has also built a state-of-the art network operation centre in Pune to service fixed line customers.
Chopra further stated that Wipro will be managing both end-to-end services of both managing the fixed line network as well as understanding their customers, right from provisioning line network as they come out on fixed line services and then monitoring their performances as well as ground support etc.
Telecom NZ to Continue Cost Reduction: CEO
Telecom Corp.’s CEO has stated that the company will continue to cut costs and reduce staff over the next three years as it seeks to improve its bottom line.
As per reports citing Telecom Chief Executive Paul Reynolds, the company’s strategy for the next three years is to improve processes, capital efficiency and cost effectiveness with some changes resulting in job losses.
He added that on apples to apples basis, Telecom will employ fewer people than it does today in 2013.
The executive declined to give specific numbers on how many jobs would be cut. Currently, Telecom’s total work force stands at about 8,500.
But Reynolds added the company is considering bringing some outsourced jobs–about a few hundred–back into the company. Years ago, the company outsourced a lot of IT work and now they are looking at what parts they can do more cost effectively by bringing the work and jobs back into Telecom.
IBM to manage Bharti Airtel’s IT operations in Africa
Bharti Airtel and IBM have joined hands to renovate the budding African mobile communications market and increase the economic development athwart the continent.IBM has bagged a 10-year agreement in principle will extend innovative relationship that began in 2004. IBM will handle IT for Bharti Airtel’s 16 operations in Africa.
The deal will enable Bharti Airtel to provide innovative and affordable 2G and 3G mobile services across the continent.
According to Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and managing director, Bharti Airtel, there are huge opportunities throughout Africa to transform how people communicate and how communities interact. Delivering on that opportunity through affordable mobile communications for everyone is our focus. The company is delighted to extend the successful relationship with IBM in South Asia to Africa. This transformational business delivery model, which will be a first in Africa’s telecom industry, will bring enhanced efficiencies to the company’s operations and help the company to deliver world-class mobile services to the customers.
According to a Deloitte report commissioned by the mobile communications industry association GSMA, only 40 out of every 100 Africans have a mobile phone. However, demand is growing at an average rate of 25% annually, and a % rise in mobile penetration could increase gross domestic product by 1.2% in developing markets. The partnership will enable the telecom operator to expand its network and systems to cater to more than 100 million African customers by 2012.
Once the deal is done, IBM will handle customer service for Bharti and provide the hardware, software and services to run everything from billing and call-traffic management to delivering new services like music and video.
According to Samuel J Palmisano, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, IBM, the company has achieved great success together in India, and now we are bringing that model to Africa. By building a 21st century telecommunications infrastructure for the continent in effect, treating all of Africa as a system of systems the company expects to help spark transformation not just in communications but across all sectors of society empowering businesses, governments and individual citizens to connect, innovate and achieve economic growth.
BT to launch fixed telephony in Brazil
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Launch of commercial fixed telephony service in Brazil has been planned by UK-based telecoms operator BT Group by next month. The new service is said to be set and complete and ready for the launch.
The initial focus will be on the corporate group although any comment on any goals for 2010 in terms of subscriber numbers is declined by the company. NGN infrastructure provided by domestic equipment manufacturer Tropico will be utilized by BT Brazil to provide the new service. Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Curitiba will receive the service initially.
According to BT Brasil general director Sergio Paulo Gallindo, with this launch the firm will complete its portfolio in Brazil, offering a unified communications solutions for the enterprise segment.
