Facebook to increase revenue via mobile ads (USA)
Social networking giant Facebook, which announced its IPO (Initial Public Offering) plans last week, is planning to increase its revenue by focussing on subscribers logging in through their mobile devices, according to a report by FT. With the widespread adoption of smartphones, users have been increasingly using their mobile handset to stay connected on Facebook.
As per the report, the social networking site, owned by Mark Zuckerberg, is planning to introduce advertisements to mobile users in the coming weeks before its IPO. The ads will displayed in the user’s news feed and are expected to go live in March.
Facebook had claimed that is has been unable to earn revenue from over 400 million members using their mobile device to access the site, which may have a negative impact on the firm’s financial results. Further, the firm believes that putting the sponsored ads on mobiles is a potential opportunity to increase revenue.
However, industry analysts claim that Facebook will be need to be careful with its new strategy as many users may not like seeing too many commercial ads on their small screen device.
Samsung records 17 percent rise in Q4 profits (South Korea)
South Korean manufacturer Samsung Electronics has reported fourth quarter profits amounting to US$ 3.6 billion, representing a 17 percent increase from US$ 3.04 billion, a year earlier. The rise in demand for Galaxy smartphones helped Samsung surpass Apple as the leading handset manufacturer for 2011.
According to reports, the success of the Galaxy SII has been instrumental in Samsung selling almost 300 million handsets in the past year. Other devices such as the Galaxy Note and tablet computers launched by the company are expected to further strengthen its position in the smartphone market.
Further, apart from the high-end phones such as the SII and the Note, Samsung also offers a variety of affordable smartphones with an impressive design, thereby increasing its reach across the market. As per sources, industry analysts estimate that Samsung may succeed Apple in 2012, as mobile operators recognize Samsung as a strong competitor to Apple devices.
Carphone Warehouse reports decline in pre-pay mobile sales (Europe)
Carphone Warehouse, Europe’s biggest mobile phone retailer, has reported a 40 percent decline in the overall pre-pay mobile market, citing lack of customer demand and fewer options of smartphones in the segment as the prime reasons for the decline.
According to reports, the company, which has 24,000 outlets across Europe, has reported a 4.7% decline in like-for-like sales across its stores in the UK and Europe, with connections down by 16.6%.
However, as per sources, the retailer said it witnessed a 15 percent growth in revenues from devices such tablet computers, applications and accessories.
Further, reports reveal that Roger Taylor, CEO, Carphone Warehouse has said that there is probably US$ 62 million to US$ 78 million of revenue coming out of that prepay segment, which they are not going to directly replace.
MetroPCS misses analysts’ estimates for new subscribers (USA)
U.S. wireless operators Metro PCS and Leap Wireless have missed analysts’ estimates in terms of the number of subscribers added in the fourth quarter. According to a report by BN, MetroPCS added 197,000 new users during the period against an estimated 223,000 new users. Further, Leap Wireless has reported a monthly churn of 3.9 percent against the estimated 3.6 percent.
According to reports, a major reason for this decline is the affordable tariff plans introduced by some of the bigger players such as AT&T and Verizon. Sources claim that the combined offer of smartphones and iPhones with a contract by the leading telecom operators have also resulted in many subscribers switching to their services.
Verizon sells 4.2 million iPhones during the holiday season (USA)
Verizon Wireless, a leading mobile operator in the U.S., reported iPhone sales of over 4.2 million in the holiday quarter, more than double its sales in the earlier quarter. However, according to reports, Fran Shammo, CEO, Verizon has said that the increased sale of the iPhones could impact the profit margins for the final quarter of 2011.
As per sources, Mr. Shammo also revealed that apart from the strong sales of the iPhone, the company also saw high demand for the LTE (Long Term Evolution) enabled smartphones which reached a total of 2.2 million handsets. He added that the sale of these devices at subsidized rates could lead to a decline in the fourth quarter margins by 500 to 600 basis points.
Android devices lead the way on Christmas
Smartphones have steadily been gaining popularity as the consumers’ preferred choice for a mobile device. According to reports, Andy Rubin, Senior Vice President (Mobile), Google, has reportedly revealed that over 3.7 million Android devices were activated during the Christmas weekend. Further, sources claim that the combined activation of Apple and Android devices have doubled as compared to the last year.
Industry analysts believe that a major reason for the success is the availability of affordable smartphones in the market. Also with Apple offering its earlier versions of the iPhone at discounted prices, the number of people using these devices has gone up considerably. Further, a large amount of mobile operators across the globe have introduced special data tariff plans keeping such devices in mind which have helped in the adoption of these handsets.
iPhone sales help AT&T achieve record sales (USA)
U.S. based mobile operator AT&T is hopeful of achieving record smartphone sales in the fourth quarter with Apple’s latest iPhone 4S leading the way.According to reports, the company almost equaled its sales of 6.1 million in Q3 of last year, within the first two months of the same period this year. Further, with the festive season coming up, the company is expected to see a significant rise in its sales.
Apart from offering the iPhone 4S, AT&T is also giving users the iPhone 3GS free with a contract of two years, enabling many more users with different budget levels to own an iPhone. The operator also offers Samsung smartphones powered by Google’s Android software along with handsets from Motorola.
AOL to increase revenue from mobile-advertising (USA)
American global internet services and media company, AOL, is working towards increasing the revenue share from mobile advertising in the next 18 months. According to reports, Tim Armstrong, CEO, AOL has said that currently advertising on mobile devices accounts for a tiny percentage of sales which he hopes to increase to 10 percent or more of overall ad sales.
As per sources, the company’s revenue from advertising went up from 52 percent in the previous year to 60 percent this year. The CEO also said that with increasing number of users switching to smartphones and companies focusing on mobile advertising as a source of revenue, the M&A activity in this sphere is expected to rise.
Further, strong competition from Google and Facebook have caused a decline in the internet business of AOL, which reported a net loss of US$ 782.5 million in the last year, causing the CEO to look for better ways to target customers.
Congstar launches new smartphones with internet flat rate bundles (Germany)
Congstar, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom has reportedly launched a number of smartphones bundled with an internet flat-rate, enabling users to save upto 25 percent in comparison to the price paid when the service is availed separately. As per sources, the operator offers users five plans to choose from in combination with their preferred Congstar plan.
According to reports, the operator has revealed that the contract term for all the sparpaket plans is two years. Further, Stephan Heininger, Marketing Director, Congstar has reportedly said that they have launched the five offers to suit the varying needs of all their customers, across different budget segments ranging from the Samsung Galaxy to the Samsung Galaxy SII.
As per company reports, the offers include the Samsung Galaxy Mini at a deposit of US$ 40 along with US$ 13 per month, along with the HTC Wildfire 3 at a deposit of US$ 40 and US$ 20 per month. Other bundles include the Sony Ericsson Xperia Active with a deposit of US$ 13 and a payment of US$ 24 per month, the Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray with a deposit of US$ 81 and US$ 24 per month as well as the Samsung Galaxy S II with a deposit of US$ 135 and a charge of US$ 34 per month.
MTS adds nearly 800,000 customers with Android smartphones (India)
MTS, a unit of Sistema Syam TeleServices Limited (SSTL), has reportedly added around 800,000 customers in the month of October alone, with the launch of two low cost Android smartphones – MTS MTag 3.1 and MTS Livewire priced under US$ 100.
According to reports, a spokesperson for MTS has said that they were able to get 7,95,523 customers in the festive month of October because they gave the CDMA consumers the option to choose from a variety of Android phones at different price points and they also initiated a lot of awareness campaign across the country. He added that the launch of the two smartphones in the festive season helped propel their growth.
As per sources, pre-paid users received 150 minutes of calls, 150 SMSs and 150 MB of data free every month for 12 months, with the smartphone. Whereas postpaid users were offered a 12 month contract during which users had to pay Rs 250 each month, against which they received 250 minutes of calls, 250 SMSs and 250 MB of data free each month.
