Samsung Expects To Sell 200 Million Handsets In 2009. Company Has Sold 40 million Touchscreen Devices In 2009, Compared With 10 million A Year Ago.

Posted on December 2, 2009 by admin

Samsung Electronics, the world’s No. 2 mobile phone maker, gave an upbeat forecast for 2009 mobile phone sales due to sharp growth in touchscreen models, but surging sales may not guarantee higher margins.

Growing competition for market share could put Samsung under pressure to lower prices in the high-margin touchscreen phones, with iPhone‘s debut in the domestic market last week set to challenge Samsung and home-town rival LG Electronics.

“Touch phones taking a bigger portion of handset sales will not likely have a significant impact on profitability because makers eventually have to cut prices to appeal to the wider public,” said Hanwha Securities analyst Seo Do-won.

“What we have to set sight on is the smartphone market, in which Samsung is still weaker than Apple, RIM and Nokia (NOK1V.HE). Samsung has strengths in high-function and hardware sides, but is weak in software and services compared with rivals,” Seo said.

Samsung, which trails Finland’s Nokia, said on Monday it was on track to exceed its 2009 mobile phone sales target, with touchscreen models enjoying sharp growth.

It had previously said it aimed to sell more than 200 million phones this year, after selling slightly less than that figure in 2008.

The blockbuster iPhone of Apple made its debut in South Korea recently after local regulators cleared the final hurdle for its sales in a market that is home to 47 million mobile phone users.

With established strength in premium and feature phones, Samsung and LG have recently boosted their smartphone line-ups to compete with Apple and Blackberry maker Research In Motion

Samsung said its global market share in handsets rose over 20 percent for the first time in the third quarter, with its telecom unit posting a profit margin of 10 percent in the third quarter, unchanged from the second quarter.

Research firm Gartner said this month global mobile phone salesthis year would be roughly on par with 2008 and grow 5-8 percent next year.

Samsung said in a statement handsets adopting full touchscreens would account for about 20 percent of its mobile phone sales this year. In 2008, such phones made up only 5 percent of Samsung’s total sales.

Samsung had sold around 40 million full touchscreen devices between January and November this year, compared with 10 million in 2008.

Feature-packed premium phones and smartphones with intuitive user interfaces have prompted a boom in touchscreen models that allow users to manipulate cellphones more easily.

“Samsung will continue to expand the global full touch phone market by introducing phones tailored to individual regions and user requirement with stylish designs, intuitive UIs and cutting edge features,” JK Shin, head of Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Communications Division, said in the statement.

Samsung Mobile Display, Samsung Electronics’ mobile screen venture, expects touchscreens to be adopted by about 50 percent of major portable devices — mobile phones, digital cameras, navigations and digital media players – sold in 2013.

By afternoon, shares of Samsung, also the world’s largest maker of memory chips and flat screen televisions, were up 2.3 percent, in line with the broader market’s 2.5 percent gain.

LCD-TV Prices Down 22 Percent, Sales Increase 6 Percent.

Posted on December 2, 2009 by admin

Decisive price cuts are helping to lift sales of LCD flat-panel TVs after Thanksgiving, research firm iSuppli Corp. said in a new report.

ISuppli said promotional prices are 22 percent lower than before Black Friday, the traditional start of the holiday shopping season. ISuppli estimates 6 percent more TV sets will be sold during a seven-day period that began on Black Friday compared with the same period last year.

The average advertised Black Friday price for a 32-inch set was $369, down from $490 before Thanksgiving.

Prices for larger sets were down more modestly, about 7 percent. Manufacturers instead packed better features into the models that went on sale, such as faster refresh rates for a steadier picture, iSuppli said.

Big brands like Samsung Electronics Co., LG Electronics Inc. and Sony Corp. offered the biggest discounts because they have had the highest regular prices, according to iSuppli analyst Tina Tseng.

ISuppli’s analysis excludes plasma TVs, another type of flat panel that’s less popular than LCD-based units.

A power outage at a Corning Inc. factory in Taiwan didn’t cause a shortage of glass for TVs as initially feared, iSuppli noted. The outage occurred in October, after manufacturers had already bought components for the sets that went on sale on Black Friday.

Linda McFarland Becomes Executive Vice President Of Business Development Of 5R Processors

Posted on December 2, 2009 by admin

Paragon Green, a leader in the information technology (IT) asset recovery and e-waste recycling industry, announced today the appointment of Linda McFarland as executive vice president of business development for joint venture partner 5R Processors Ltd. (5R), based in Ladysmith, Wis. She will continue to serve as CEO of Paragon Green and president and CEO of Classic Computer Recovery, Inc. (CCR), which are both based in Garden City, Mich.

Paragon Green is a joint venture formed by McFarland, founder and owner of CCR, and Tom Drake, founder and CEO of 5R. Between CCR and 5R, the companies recycle an estimated 20 million pounds per year, and Paragon Green projects that it will collect and recycle more than 50 million pounds of materials in 2010.

McFarland is a visionary entrepreneur in IT asset recovery and the electronics recycling industry. She is known for being creatively passionate about diverting e-waste from curbside disposal by working to responsibly convert recoverable electronic equipment into re-marketable used products or component parts. Any equipment Paragon Green collects that does not have a resale value in the used market is safely dismantled and converted into commodities for reclaimed metals, plastic and other recyclable materials.

“With the global economic recession, IT departments are focusing on cost reduction as a leading priority in their budget planning,” McFarland said. “Reclaiming, refurbishing and remarketing IT equipment is an innovative and environmentally proactive approach for companies to offset IT budgets by converting used assets to cash.”

Paragon Green’s asset recycling program is a full circle, end-to-end market managed recycling solution that supports a zero e-waste environmental agenda.

“Paragon Green accepts all e-waste from the commercial markets, including what others consider non-value electronics, including monitors and televisions,” McFarland said. “We also do not ship unprocessed, hazardous e-scrap, such as lead-based glass found in monitors and televisions to other countries. Instead, our lead-based glass de-manufacturing solution, called glass-to-glass processing, is the only true, environmentally sound recycling process.”

In addition to e-waste, Paragon Green is a waste recycling resource for a broad range of goods including fluorescent lights, cardboard, plastic, rubber, and hazardous materials such as lead acid batteries. Paragon Green also takes an active role with schools and community governments by participating in collection events and pilot programs that encourage the community to recycle.

Paragon Green serves medium-sized companies and large corporations within the healthcare, education, government, hospitality, solid waste, e-waste and asset recovery industries, as well as school districts, government entities and solid waste agencies. It operates four plants with nine locations in six states, totaling 300,000 square feet of space, located in Michigan, Illinois, Georgia, Wisconsin and Tennessee.

California Integrated Waste Management Board Honors 250 Businesses That Reduce Waste Sent To Landfills

Posted on December 1, 2009 by admin

The California Integrated Waste Management Board on Monday honored more than 250 businesses and nonprofit organizations for efforts to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills.

Winners in the state’s Waste Reduction Awards Program ranged from tech giants Hewlett-Packard Co, Intel Corp and NEC Electronics America Inc. Hewlett-Packard’s Roseville campus now diverts 91 percent of its waste material, from recycling cardboard and paper products to reusing bubble wrap. NEC’s manufacturing plant, also in Roseville, last year diverted 82 percent of its solid waste, raising $430,625 in recycling revenue for the company.

Driven by aggressive state mandates, recycling has become a major industry in California. The sector employs 85,000 and produces $10 billion in goods and services annually, according to the waste board.

To make the list of recycling honorees, a company must demonstrate an annual improvement in its waste-reduction practices, according to Beatriz Sandoval, a spokeswoman for the Integrated Waste Management Board.

The agency has been publishing the list since 1993. Because of the breadth of industries represented, there are no set standards for qualifying, Sandoval said. Nearly every company submitting documentation to the agency wins an award.

Huge Marketing Budget Drives Motorola Droid Sales. Expects to Sell 1 Million Units In 2009.

Posted on December 1, 2009 by admin

Motorola’s and Verizon Wireless’ $100 million marketing campaign for the Motorola Droid seems to be paying off with strong sales that will likely result in more than 1 million devices being sold by the end of the year.

The Droid, the only smartphone currently on the market that uses Google Android‘s 2.0 operating system, is Motorola’s second Android device and it’s available only on Verizon Wireless’s network. The device is turning out to be the hit phone of the season, thanks in large part to an expensive and extensive advertising campaign.

Motorola Droid

(Credit: Motorola)

Neither company is reporting sales figures. But analysts say sales look good. The companies have likely sold between 700,000 and 800,000 Droids since the device was launched in early November, according to equity analyst Mark Sue of RBC Capital Markets.

“Verizon’s big marketing push for the Droid is strengthening as we close in on the holidays, and following our round of checks, we believe about 700,000 to 800,000 Droids have been sold, making our hurdle of 1 [million] Motorola Droids achievable for 4Q09 [ending December 31],” Sue said in his research note. “Motorola, for its part, has done a good job on the production side, and our survey of over 100 stores indicates strong demand, limited stock outs, and very few returns.”

John Stratton, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Verizon Wireless, said when the device was launched in late October that Verizon would be pouring in more money to market this device than any other phone it has ever sold. And now it looks like the money has been well spent. From advertisements that specificallyhighlight the Droid to ones that focus on Verizon’s extensive and reliable 3G wireless network, it’s clear that the company has AT&T and the Apple iPhone in its crosshairs.

AT&T has actually sued Verizon over the advertisements about its 3G wireless network coverage.

Some Verizon Wireless stores, especially in major cities, are selling between 100 and 200 Droids per week since the launch in early November, Sue added.

The success of the Droid is good news both for Motorola and for Verizon Wireless.

Motorola comeback
For Motorola, the Droid represents a chance to make a comeback in the cell phone market. The iconic American company that practically invented the cell phone market has struggled for the past several years now. After the runaway success of the ultra-thin Motorola Razr in 2004, the company has been unable to come up with a hit phone. And it has steadily lost market share to other competitors, such as Nokia, Samsung, and LG Electronics. It’s also ceded market share in the fastest growing segment of the market, smartphones, to newcomers like Apple and Research In Motion.

Motorola’s mobile devices CEO Sanjay Jha took a bold gamble more than a year ago when he decided to dedicate the company’s resources to building phones using the Google Android operating system. The Droid and theMotorola Cliq, which is exclusively sold on T-Mobile USA’s network, are the first two Motorola Android phones to hit the market.

But Jha said the Google Android operating system will not only be used in high-end devices like the Droid, but it will also be used to power less expensive phones, creating a new tier of smartphones that will eventually replace the basic feature phone category. Jha said the company will launch at least 20 more Android devices in 2010.

The success of the Droid is an important first step in getting Motorola back on track. But equity analyst Ittai Kidron of Oppenheimer said in a research note Monday that sales of the Motorola Cliq are falling short of expectations. Motorola is expected to sell 1.5 million smartphones in the fourth quarter. And two-thirds of them are expected to be Droids.

Kidron said the Cliq is not selling well mostly because of issues with battery life. Motorola is supposedly preparing a software patch to fix the problem. But he also noted that T-Mobile appears to be losing interest in the device and is not marketing it heavily.

But T-Mobile says that the Cliq is doing just fine. And the carrier said that it’s committed to marketing the phone through the holiday season.

“The Motorola Cliq is very popular among our highly connected customers and is the only device with Motorola’s innovative Motoblur solution,” a company spokesman said. “T-Mobile is excited about the Motorola Cliq for the holidays and continues to showcase it prominently in T-Mobile retail stores and with recent holiday deals.”

Verizon’s iPhone alternative
The Droid’s success is also important to Verizon Wireless, the nation’s largest wireless operator in the country. It is the first device that offers a true challenge to Apple’s iPhone, which runs exclusively in the U.S. on AT&T’s network. While Verizon has a strong reputation for its network, consumers often complain about its lack of cool phones. Up to this point, Verizon has mainly competed against AT&T and the iPhone with RIM’s BlackBerry devices. But RIM’s touch-screen BlackBerry Storm, which was first introduced a year ago, was largely a disappointment.

The Droid offers Verizon customers an alternative to the iPhone on the Verizon network. This fact could help Verizon retain some consumers who were thinking of leaving for the iPhone. But it might also attract new customers who are either disappointed with AT&T’s service or have heard bad things about the network.

Verizon Wireless representatives say the Droid is certainly an important part of the company’s device line-up.

“We are pleased with sales over the holiday weekend,” Brenda Raney, a spokeswoman for the carrier said in an e-mail. “This phone clearly fits the needs of a number of customers who are excited about its availability on the Verizon Wireless network.”

But if analyst data is to be trusted, it is clear that the huge marketing budget for the Droid is at least part of the reason why the device has been so successful. The HTC Droid Eris, another Android device sold exclusively on Verizon’s network, is not selling as well as the Droid, Sue said in his note. The HTC Droid Eris went on sale the same day the Droid was launched, but with much less fanfare.

Part of the problem is the fact that there are many Android devices coming to market. And the number will only increase next year. The lesson from the success of the Motorola Droid is clear. If device makers and carriers hope for break-out success, then they will have to spend big on marketing.

Nokia: “Asia Mobile Recycling Yield Beats Europe”

Posted on December 1, 2009 by admin

SINGAPORE–The raw material recovery rate for Nokia, is higher in Asia than in Europe due to low labor costs that allow workers to be employed to separate materials before the recycling process, said a Nokia spokesperson.

“In the West, it’s about 80 to 85 percent yield. Here, because we segregate the materials, we get about 99.5 percent yield.” said Francis Cheong, Nokia’s environmental affairs manager for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.

Nokia outsources its recycling efforts in the country to local recycling service, Total Environmental Solutions-Asset Material Management (TES-AMM).

Joe Vong, TES-AMM’s general manager, explained that low labor costs allow the plant to employ people to separate the materials during what they call the “dismantling” process.

“In Europe, [the plants] have a different recycling management in which a whole phone is crushed and broken down. The recycle yield for this is close to 70 to 80 percent,” said Vong. “This is unlike what we do in Asia, where we crush the plastic and boards separately so we get about 95 to 97 percent yield.”

At the Singapore plant, mobile phones are dismantled by human agents who categorize different parts of the phones into different “streams”. Vong described the separation process as the “choke point”. He added that personnel must be very familiar with the materials they are working with and, on average, process 20 to 30 phones per hour in an 8-hour work day.

Cheong said Nokia collects roughly 1.5 to 2 tons of e-waste each month from the Southeast Asia and Pacific region from the public as well as R&D centers, but did not divulge how much of this waste is derived from mobile phones.

In a presentation, a spokesperson from the plant pointed out that its core business lies in “precious metal recovery from e-waste”. Among the metal that can be recovered are copper, aluminum, nickel, alloy, and even gold.

However, turning waste into gold is not an easy process. Alex Hee, project manager at the plant, said it takes 50,000 to 80,000 phones to extract 1kg of gold.

Nokia’s Cheong revealed that from the recovered material, the phone maker reclaims only the cobalt and lithium salts extracted from the recycled batteries, as these metals are very rare. These are then remade into new lithium-ion batteries.

Nokia this year has invested more than S$1 million (US$720,000) in social responsibility programs in the Southeast Asia and the Pacific region, most specifically in recycling and take-back initiatives, he said.

In a previous study in July 2008, Nokia noted that only 3 percent of the study’s respondentsrecycled their mobile phones. To raise awareness for mobile phone recycling, the handset manufacturer undertakes initiatives to reach out to the local communities in Asia cities like Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.

SOURCE: ZDNETASIA.COM

By Liau Yun Qing, ZDNet