World smartphone shipments to fall 12 percent this year on virus woes: IDC

Global smartphone shipments will fall nearly 12 percent to 1.2 billion units in 2020, market research firm IDC said on Wednesday, citing lower consumer spending due to the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only disrupted business supply chains, with major smartphone makers such as Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd flagging financial hits, but also squeezed consumer spending worldwide.

"Nationwide lockdowns and rising unemployment have reduced consumer confidence and reprioritized spending towards essential goods, directly impacting the uptake of smartphones in the short term", said Sangeetika Srivastava, senior research analyst with IDC.


Apple, which was forced to shut retail stores in the United States and Europe following the outbreak, introduced discounts on the iPhone 11 in China and released a new low-price SE model to weather a plunge in global smartphone demand.

Research firm TrendForce said in April it expected global smartphone production to slump a record 16.5 percent in the June quarter from a year earlier.

That follows a 10 percent drop in output worldwide in the March quarter, when the outbreak spread and peaked in China before sweeping through Europe and the United States.

However, shipments from China's factories to vendors rose 17% in April from a year earlier, suggesting signs of an early rebound in domestic demand in the world's largest smartphone market.

In China, where the economy has begun to reopen and factories have resumed operations, IDC expects a single-digit decline in this year.

The research firm also expects upcoming 5G deployment to help the recovery of smartphone shipments next year, adding it does not expect growth to return until the first quarter of 2021.

-reuters-

Apple seizes smartphone sales crown from Samsung

SAN FRANCISCO -- Apple was the top smartphone seller in the final quarter of last year, seizing the crown from Samsung, according to market trackers.

Apple shipped an estimated 73.8 million iPhones during the fourth quarter, driven by the popularity of its newest models in the US and Europe and lower-priced handsets in other parts of the world, International Data Corp reported this week.

Apple, which has been below Samsung for some time, "is recovering, due to cheaper iPhone 11 pricing and healthier demand in Asia and North America," said Neil Mawston of Strategy Analytics, whose separate survey also showed Apple on top in the past quarter.

South Korean consumer electronics giant Samsung delivered some 69.4 million handsets as it slipped to the number two position, according to IDC.

Chinese smartphone powerhouse Huawei remained a strong player in its home market, but saw sales of premium models take a hit in Western Europe in the wake of US sanctions, according to IDC analyst Melissa Chau.

"Things will continue to look challenging for Huawei given that the trade war is still not yet resolved, while new uncertainty raised around the Wuhan coronavirus could potentially have adverse effects on not just Huawei, but all players reliant on the China smartphone supply chain," Chau said.

Huawei shipped 56.2 million smartphones during the quarter, a decline of about seven percent from the same period a year earlier, IDC reported.

IHS Markit senior analyst Anna Ahrens said Huawei faced headwinds because of US sanctions which prevented it from getting key components and software.

"In markets like Western Europe, the lack of Google services will make Huawei phones a hard sell for consumers, especially considering that the company's Mate series is positioned squarely in the premium price segment," Ahrens said.

Samsung remained the top smartphone seller overall last year, and the broader market is expected to get a boost as 5G telecom networks get established and new smartphones synched to them are launched.

For the full year, overall smartphone sales were down around one percent despite an improving trend in the fourth quarter, according to IDC and Strategy Analytics surveys.

IDC reported shipments of 368 million handsets in 2019 compared with 373 million a year earlier, marking a third consecutive yearly decline.

Agence France-Presse

Apple surges ahead in wearables on smartwatch sales: survey

WASHINGTON - Strong holiday season sales of Apple's newest smartwatch propelled the California tech giant into the lead in wearable tech in 2017, a market tracker said Thursday.

A report by the research firm IDC said Apple jumped to the front of the wearables pack in the fourth quarter following the release of Apple Watch 3, and placed at the top of the market for the full year as well.

While official sales figures for the Apple Watch are not disclosed, IDC estimated Apple sold some 8 million in the final 3 months of last year, representing 21 percent of all wearables.

That pushed Apple ahead of US rival Fitbit which had a 14.2 percent share of wearables in the quarter, and China's Xiaomi (13 percent).

"Interest in smartwatches continues to grow and Apple is well-positioned to capture demand," said IDC research director Ramon Llamas.

"User tastes have become more sophisticated over the past several quarters and Apple pounced on the demand for cellular connectivity and streaming multimedia. What will bear close observation is how Apple will iterate upon these and how the competition chooses to keep pace."

For the full year 2017, Apple sold an estimated 17.7 million smartwatches, accounting for 15.3 percent of the wearable tech market, according to IDC.

That was ahead of Xiaomi (13.6 percent) and Fitbit (13.3 percent) for the full year, IDC said.

IDC said the overall wearables market -- which includes fitness trackers, smart clothing, eyewear and other devices -- rose 10.3 percent in 2017 to 115.4 million units. That compared with a sharper 27 percent increase in 2016.

"The slowdown is not due to a lack of interest -- far from it," Llamas said.

"Instead, we saw numerous vendors, relying on older models, exit the market altogether. At the same time, the remaining vendors -- including multiple start-ups -- have not only replaced them, but with devices, features, and services that have helped make wearables more integral in people's lives. Going forward, the next generation of wearables will make the ones we saw as recently as 2016 look quaint."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Huawei's AI-powered smartphone drives a Porsche

BARCELONA - China's Huawei used the artificial intelligence capabilities of its flagship Mate 10 Pro phone to drive a sports car as the Mobile World Congress got under way in Barcelona Monday, in what it said was a world first.

The Porsche avoided several obstacles, including a dog and a bike, as it drove in a straight line to demonstrate the AI-powered object recognition technology in the phone's camera.

The tech giant said it was "the first mobile device manufacturer in the world to use an AI-powered smartphone to drive a car," saying the technology was able to distinguish between thousands of different objects and thereby able to avoid any collision.

Huawei said the test was only designed to demonstrate its phone's AI capabilities and did not plan to develop a new driverless car.

"The smartphone totally controls the vehicle, we did not do anything except for steering elements," said Arne Herkelmann, who heads Huawei's handset portfolio in Europe.

"The camera sees that there is something on the road, recognizes what it is and acts to avoid it, we trained our AI to be able to recognize a road and its possible obstacles."

In 2017, Huawei was the world's third biggest seller of smartphones after Samsung and Apple, holding a 10.4 percent market share, up from 9.5 percent a year earlier, according to figures from research firm IDC.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Big screens drive steady growth in smartphone sales: study

WASHINGTON - The global smartphone market is expected to see steady if unspectacular growth in the next few years, as consumers turn increasingly to large-screen handsets known as "phablets," a market tracker said.

A report by the research firm IDC said phablets -- with displays larger than 5.5 inches (14 centimeters) -- will account for some 40 percent of the 1.5 billion smartphones sold in 2017, and that the phablet share will rise to more than half by 2019.

The overall smartphone market is on a modest growth pace of around 3 percent that will boost global sales to 1.7 billion by 2021, according to IDC researchers.

But growth is coming from the large-screen devices as sales dip for conventional handsets with displays of 5.5 inches or less, IDC said.

"In 2012, phablets were just one percent of smartphone shipments and now they are approaching 50 percent of the market just a few years later," said Ryan Reith, an IDC analyst.

"Consumers continue to consume more video entertainment, gaming, social media, and other data-heavy applications on their smartphones making the display size and type a critical factor in smartphone buying decisions," Reith added.

IDC said iPhone buyers are following this trend, with the larger-screen Apple handsets to account for 41 percent of sales volume in 2017 and 50 percent or more in 2018.

IDC said the large-screen and "premium" devices entering the market are likely to boost the average price of smartphones.

"There is no doubt that 2017 gave birth to the new ultra high-end segment of the smartphone market," said Anthony Scarsella, an IDC research manager.

"The latest flagship devices from Samsung, Apple, Google, LG, and others has pushed the high end to the $850-plus level for the first time. Despite these price hikes, consumers look as if they are willing to swallow the cost just to have the latest and greatest device in their pockets."

Average selling prices for smartphones are expected to rise to $317 by 2021, up from $282 in 2016.

IDC estimated the market share for Android-powered devices to be 85.1 percent this year, and mirror the overall market over the next few years to hit 85.3 percent by 2021.

The market share for Apple is estimated at 14.8 percent in 2017, and seen slipping to 14.6 percent by 2021, IDC said.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Apple expected to unveil new iPhone on Sept. 12

Apple sent out invitations Thursday to a September 12 media event at which the US tech giant is expected to unveil new iPhone models for the 10th anniversary of the culture-changing smartphones.

The keenly anticipated event will be the first to take place in the Steve Jobs Theater at its new "spaceship" campus in Silicon Valley.

In trademark style, Apple revealed little in the invitation that provided the date, time, location and a message that read "Let's meet at our place."

Apple is under particular pressure to dazzle as the California-based company looks for ways to maintain its image as an innovation leader in a global market showing signs of slowing.

"Clearly, Apple wants to do something different for the 10th anniversary" of the iPhone, NPD Group analyst Stephen Baker told AFP.

Some reports say a new iPhone will include a high-quality, edge-to-edge screen with a notch in the top for an ear-piece and an extra camera supporting 3D facial recognition and selfies.

Some speculate that the new handset will have a glass backing that offers wireless charging.

"We are expecting a major design refresh on Apple," GlobalData analyst Avi Greengart told AFP.

"That has been a sore point, especially in China. People are looking to show off a status symbol, so it needs to look different than Huawei or Xiaomi, and I think it will."

Apple has declined to comment on speculation, which has included talk of as many as three new iPhone handsets, including a premium model priced at around $1,000.

Bye-bye button?

The most dramatic changes were expected in the premium model, which could go so far as to get rid of a 'home' button that has been a main control feature since the iPhone made its debut in 2007.

Flicking or swiping gestures could replace the home button function, enabling the handset face to appear almost all-screen.

The iPhone could also get more rounded corners.

New iPhones would, of course, be designed to showcase capabilities of the latest version of Apple's iOS software for powering mobile devices.

Apple showed iOS 11 to developers at a conference earlier this year, and is likely to release it with the new iPhone models.

The mobile operating system boasted new camera features, Siri digital assistant made smarter, and the potential for augmented reality applications.

The Sept. 12 event could also feature updated versions of Apple TV and Apple Watch.

Notes and Pixels

Global smartphone sales saw a modest decline of 0.8 percent in the second quarter of 2017, as market leaders Samsung and Apple consolidated their positions, an IDC survey showed.

The South Korean giant maintained the top spot with a 23.3 percent market share, while Apple held onto second place with 12 percent, according to IDC.

Huawei was the third-largest vendor, with an 11.3 percent market share. The Chinese electronics giant closed the gap with Apple, adding two percentage points to market share from a year earlier, according to the survey.

China-based Oppo and Xiaomi rounded out the top five.

Samsung last week unveiled a new model of its Galaxy Note as it seeks to leave behind the debacle over exploding batteries in the previous generation of the device, and mount a renewed challenge to Apple and its soon-to-come iPhone 8.

A Note 8 "phablet" introduced at an event in New York City left some analysts underwhelmed by its lack of new features beyond a dual-lens camera for telephoto zoom -- already available on the iPhone7 Plus.

The Note 8 will hit shops on September 15, its debut coming on the heels of Samsung launching new Galaxy 8 smartphones.

Meanwhile, Google-made Pixel smartphones that debuted last year will likely get a second generation in the months ahead as rivals field new champions to battle in the prime year-end holiday shopping market.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Apple under pressure to dazzle as market slows

SAN FRANCISCO, California - As Apple and Samsung gear up to launch new flagship smartphones, the market leaders are seeking a wow factor that can help them fend off challenges from rising Chinese-based manufacturers.

Apple is under particular pressure to dazzle as the culture-changing California iPhone maker looks for a way to maintain its image as an innovation leader in a global market showing signs of slowing.

"Clearly, Apple wants to do something different for the 10th anniversary" of the iPhone, NPD Group analyst Stephen Baker told AFP.

Baker said this is a challenge for Apple because "it is still going to be a flat piece of glass and the other things we talk about around a phone."

Apple is widely expected to unveil the latest iteration of the iPhone in September, while smartphone market leader Samsung is holding an August 23 unveiling likely to launch its Galaxy Note 8 handset.

The two market leaders are seeing rivals, mainly from China, chip away at market share, creating pressure to showcase innovation, say analysts.

Some reports say the new iPhone will include a high-quality, edge-to-edge screen with a notch in the top for an extra camera supporting 3D facial recognition.

Some speculate that the back of the new handset will be glass and will offer wireless charging.

"We are expecting a major design refresh on Apple," GlobalData analyst Avi Greengart told AFP.

"That has been a sore point, especially in China. People are looking to show off a status symbol, so it needs to look different than Huawei or Xiaomi, and I think it will."

Apple has lost ground in the Chinese market, with revenues down 10 percent in the past quarter from a year earlier in its "Greater China" segment.

Some reports say Apple could release as many as three new handsets, including an "iPhone Pro" aimed at capturing the high end of the market.

SHIFTING MARKET

Global smartphone sales saw a modest decline of 0.8 percent in the second quarter of 2017, as market leaders Samsung and Apple consolidated their positions, an IDC survey showed.

The South Korean giant maintained the top spot with a 23.3 percent market share, while Apple held onto second place with 12 percent, according to IDC.

Huawei was the third-largest vendor, with an 11.3 percent market share. The Chinese electronics giant closed the gap with Apple, adding two percentage points to market share from a year earlier, according to the survey.

China-based Oppo and Xiaomi rounded out the top five.

Samsung is in stride with a recently released Galaxy 8 flagship phone, seemingly recovered from an embarrassing recall of a Note 7 model due to batteries catching fire.

"Samsung had the Note 7 debacle, but it appears their troubles are behind them," Greengart said.

"Samsung is doing some amazing things with its display and design."

NPD's Baker said he expected "the drum beat of Hero Android phones" that could challenge the iPhone "to be a little louder this year that it has been."

Meanwhile, the Google-made Pixel smartphones that debuted last year will likely get a second generation in the months ahead.

New Pixels are expected to have richer screens and an additional front speaker, and to follow the trend of adding a second camera on the back for depth-sensing.

Gartner analyst Brian Blau suggested that, aside from Apple trying to wow with an anniversary iPhone, flagship handsets launched this year would have incremental improvements, not radical transformations.

"There will be a small number of new players, and that always brings excitement," Blau said.

New entries include the "Essential" smartphone from a startup founded by Andy Rubin, credited with being the father of Android software.

Essential, whose backers include internet colossus Amazon and China's Tencent Holdings, began selling its $699 handset this month, touting the handset's ceramic and titanium construction and the ability to add accessories on a magnetic connector.

AUGMENTING REALITY

Some analysts say the upcoming handsets may showcase the ability to handle augmented reality (AR) as a way to revive interest.

Google has pushed augmented reality with a "Tango" phone, and enabled Pixel handsets to be used for virtual reality with "Daydream" gear. And Apple has made an AR kit available to developers that could lead to iPhone apps.

"The standard AR demos we have seen for years as a future thing -- seeing how new furniture looks in your living room or virtual coupons hanging in mid-air in supermarket aisles -- we will see this fall," Greengart predicted.

Smartphone makers are also expected to do more with voice recognition and commands, making handsets more attractive in places where literacy rates are low but mobile internet access is available.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Huawei closes in on Apple, Samsung keeps lead in smartphone sales

MANILA - Chinese electronics giant Huawei nearly closed the gap with Apple Inc, but Samsung Electronics kept the world lead as smartphone sales saw a modest decline in the second quarter, according to industry tracker IDC.

Huawei shipped 38.5 million smartphones, compared to Apple's 41 million, ahead of the anticipated fourth quarter release of the 10th generation iPhone, IDC said in a statement.

Huawei, whose Mate and P lines match iPhone features but are sold at lower prices, had 11.3-percent market share compared to Apple's 12 percent.

Samsung kept the top spot by delivering some 79.8 million handsets for a 23.3-percent market share.

Samsung and Apple both slightly increased their market share compared with a year earlier, increasing sales 1.4 percent and 1.5 percent, respectively, IDC said.

Chinese manufacturers Oppo and Xiaomi rounded out the top five with market shares of 8.1 and 6.2 percent, respectively.

IDC said that overall sales were lower than a year earlier, the top 5 smartphone vendors showed positive growth while declines were seen for other manufacturers.

"It's no secret that the smartphone market is a very challenging segment for companies to maintain or grow share, especially as already low average selling prices declined by another 4.3 percent in 2016," said IDC analyst Ryan Reith.

"The smaller, more localized vendors will continue to struggle, especially as the leading volume drivers build out their portfolio into new markets and price segments."

Apple managed to boost iPhone sales from the same period a year ago despite intense speculation about the 10th anniversary edition of the popular device.

But Apple has lost ground in the Chinese market, with revenues down 10 percent from a year earlier in its "Greater China" segment. -- with Agence France-Presse

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Tech breakthroughs take a backseat in upcoming Apple iPhone launch

SAN FRANCISCO - When Apple Inc. launches its much-anticipated 10th anniversary iPhone this fall, it will offer an unwitting lesson in how much the smartphone industry it pioneered has matured.

The new iPhone is expected to include new features such as high-resolution displays, wireless charging and 3-D sensors. Rather than representing major breakthroughs, however, most of the innovations have been available in competing phones for several years.

Apple's relatively slow adoption of new features both reflects and reinforces the fact smartphone customers are holding onto their phones longer. Timothy Arcuri, an analyst at Cowen & Co, believes upwards of 40 percent of iPhones on the market are more than two years old, a historical high.

That is a big reason why investors have driven Apple shares to an all-time high. There is pent-up demand for a new iPhone, even if it does not offer breakthrough technologies.

It is not clear whether Apple deliberately held off on packing some of the new features into the current iPhone 7, which has been criticized for a lack of differentiation from its predecessor. Apple declined to comment on the upcoming product.

Still, the development and roll-out of the anniversary iPhone suggest Apple’s product strategy is driven less by technological innovation than by consumer upgrade cycles and Apple’s own business and marketing needs.

"When a market gets saturated, the growth is all about refresh," said Bob O’Donnell of Technalysis Research. "This is exactly what happened to PCs. It's exactly what happened to tablets. It's starting to happen to smartphones."

Apple is close-mouthed about upcoming product features, but analysts and reports from Asian component suppliers and others indicate that high-resolution displays based on OLED technology -- possibly with curved edges -- are likely to be part of the anniversary phone. A radical new design is not expected, according to analysts.

Some of the anticipated new technologies, notably wireless charging, remain messy. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd phones, for example, feature wireless charging but support two different sets of standards, one called Qi and the other AirFuel.

Apple recently joined the group backing Qi. But there are still at least five different groups working on wireless charging technology within Apple, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.

As to 3-D sensors, there is already one hiding in the iPhone 7. The front camera features what is known as a time-of-flight sensor, which helps it autofocus and is used in numerous phones including the Blackberry, according to TechInsights, a firm that examines the chips inside tech devices.

That sensor could be upgraded to a higher-resolution version that could handle 3-D mapping for facial recognition, said Jim Morrison, vice president at TechInsights.

Some analysts also speculate the company could remove the phone's home button, placing it and a fingerprint sensor beneath the front display glass, based on patents the company has filed.

SLOW GROWTH

Global smartphone sales were up only 2.3 percent to 1.47 billion units in 2016, according to IDC. Many carriers in the United States have stopped subsidizing phones, causing phone buyers to think harder about their next purchase.

Apple will likely make a heavy marketing push around the phone’s 10th anniversary. “IPhone set the standard for mobile computing in its first decade and we are just getting started. The best is yet to come,” Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said in a statement Jan. 8, the date the iPhone was announced by then-CEO Steve Jobs in 2007.

In 2015, the last year it disclosed the figure, Apple spent $1.8 billion on advertising, up 50 percent from the year before and nearly four times the $467 million it spent in 2007 when it first released the iPhone.

And the company continues to excel at selling higher-priced phones. Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri attributed the most recent quarter's record-setting 78.3 million iPhones sold to the iPhone 7 Plus, which for the first time included a new dual camera feature not found in other models.

The iPhone 7 Plus tops out at $969 with memory upgrades and a jet black finish. O'Donnell of Technalysis Research believes that with the next iPhone, Apple might even introduce a $1,000-plus “ultra-premium device for the real Apple-crazed folks out there who want to stand out."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Tablet market shrinks as demand grows for hybrids

SAN FRANCISCO - The tablet market shrank in the recently-ended quarter, as shipments of bargain-priced computers with detachable screens hit a record high, according to market analysis firm International Data Corporation.

Tablet makers shipped 43 million units in the quarter, down 14.7 percent from the number shipped in the same period a year earlier, according to an IDC global quarterly report.

Meanwhile, shipments of "detachables," computers with screens that can dock into keyboards to be used laptop style or undocked and used tablet style, priced less than $200 surged, IDC analysts said.

Precise numbers for detachable computers were not provided in the IDC release.

"The race to the bottom is something we have already experienced with slates and it may prove detrimental to the market in the long run as detachables could easily be seen as disposable devices rather than potential PC replacements," said IDC analyst Jitesh Ubrani.

Apple dominated the tablet market with a share of 21.5 percent, some 9.3 million iPads, strengthening its position despite shipping 6.2 percent fewer than in the same quarter last year, IDC reported.

Samsung held on to the number two position, prompting IDC to conclude that there appeared to be no "bleed over" from a massive Galaxy Note 7 recall that has tarnished the South Korean giant's image.

Samsung shipped 6.5 million tablets in a drop of 19.3 percent from the same quarter a year earlier, according to IDC.

Meanwhile, online retail titan Amazon shipped more than three times as many of its Fire tablets -- a total of 3.1 million in the quarter -- with credit given to low prices and deep discounts.

Lenovo tablet shipments were down 10.8 percent in the quarter to 2.7 million, while fifth-place Huawei shipped 2.4 million tablets in an increase of 28.4 percent from the third quarter of last year as the Chinese companies filled out the top five spots in the market, IDC reported.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Samsung mobile recovery suffers blow as Galaxy Notes 'catch fire'

SEOUL - The recovery in Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.'s mobile business suffered a blow on Thursday as reports of exploding batteries forced the firm to delay shipments of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones, and knocked $7 billion off its market value.

Investors drove the stock to two-week lows after the global smartphone leader told Reuters late on Wednesday the shipments had been delayed for quality control testing, and that shipments to South Korea's top three mobile carriers had been halted.

Faults with the new premium flagship device could deal a major blow to the South Korean giant, which was counting on the Galaxy Note 7 to maintain its strong mobile earnings momentum against Apple Inc's new iPhones expected to be unveiled next week.

"This is some major buzz-kill for Samsung, especially given all of the hard-earned excitement that products like the Note 7 have been garnering lately," IDC analyst Bryan Ma said.

"The pending Apple launch puts all the more pressure for them to contain this quickly. The timing of this couldn't have been worse."

Samsung did not comment on what problem it was trying to address or whether other markets were affected besides South Korea.

Sister company Samsung SDI Co Ltd said that while it was a supplier of Galaxy Note 7 batteries, it had received no information to suggest the batteries were faulty.

Several people posted images and videos of charred Galaxy Note 7s online and said their phones had caught on fire.

"Be careful out there, everyone rocking the new Note 7, might catch fire y'all," one user said in a YouTube clip showing a burnt Note phone. It was not immediately possible to confirm the veracity of the clip.

Samsung's shares, which hit a record high of 1.694 million won last week, fell 2 percent, and Samsung SDI tumbled 6.1 percent, versus a 0.1 percent fall for the broader market .

Several South Korean media reports, without citing direct sources, said Samsung would soon announce a plan to recall affected Note 7 phones and replace their batteries as opposed to giving the users a new device. A Samsung spokesman declined to comment on the reports.

DAMAGE CONTROL

Last year, production problems for the curved displays for the Galaxy S6 edge model resulted in disappointing sales, and Samsung risks a repeat this year if it cannot address the Galaxy Note 7 problems quickly.

Its mobile profit is on track to post annual growth for the first time in three years, thanks to robust sales of the Galaxy S7 and S7 edge devices that it launched in March to critical acclaim.

The Galaxy Note 7 received similar praise, raising expectations for strong sales in the second half. Samsung said in August demand for the new handset, priced at 988,900 won ($882) in South Korea, was far exceeding supply, pushing the firm to delay the launch in some markets.

HDC Asset Management fund manager Park Jung-hoon said it now appeared inevitable that Samsung's smartphone average selling price and profits would miss lofty second-half expectations.

"Apple is supposed to show off the iPhone 7 next week and this issue has emerged, so the current state of things do not look good," he said.

Though a components pick-up will buttress overall profits, Park said mobile operating profit might decline by up to 200 billion won for July-September.

The mobile division accounted for about 54 percent of Samsung Electronics' January-June operating profit of 14.8 trillion won.

Hyundai Securities said in a report that the Galaxy Note 7's problems should be resolved within a "few weeks".

The brokerage retained its third-quarter operating profit forecast of 8.5 trillion won.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Facebook service aimed at professionals to launch in coming months

Facebook at Work, Facebook Inc.'s professional version of its social network, is expected to launch in the coming months, after spending a year in tests, a company executive said.

The new service, geared towards workplace collaboration, is nearly identical to its ubiquitous social network, with a scrolling news "feed", "likes" and a chat service.

"I would say 95 percent of what we developed for Facebook is also adopted for Facebook at Work," Julien Codorniou, director of global platform partnerships at Facebook, told Reuters.

However, Facebook at Work users will maintain special profiles that are distinct from their existing Facebook profiles.

The company is also developing exclusive products for Facebook at Work, including security tools, Codorniou said.

Facebook started beta-testing the service in January and has kept it as a free, "invite-only" service for companies so far.

The service will be open to all companies once launched and Facebook plans to charge "a few dollars per month per user" for premium services such as analytics and customer support, a company spokeswoman said.

The online career market, which includes LinkedIn Corp and Monster Worldwide Inc, is worth about $6 billion a year, market research firm IDC had said in August.

More than 300 companies, including Heineken, Royal Bank of Scotland and jewelry company Stella and Dot, are using Facebook at Work and Club Mediterranee SA is set to be the latest adopter.

The French resort company will offer the service to all its 13,000 employees through summer 2016, Anne Browaeys-Level, Club Mediterranee's chief marketing & digital officer, told Reuters.

Facebook's Codorniou said almost everything on Facebook at Work is the same as the regular Facebook social network, with some minor exceptions.

"You cannot play Candy Crush on Facebook at Work."

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Internet-enabled devices reshaping hardcopy industry

A new study by research firm IDC has revealed that the boom in Internet-enabled mobile devices (IEMDs) is reshaping the printing industry, offering new challenges and opportunities for hardcopy vendors.


After a flat trend in 2010, IDC said it expects home and office print volumes in Western Europe to slow down even further, declining at a CAGR of 0.6 percent from 2011 through 2015. The increasing popularity of IEMDs will contribute to this slow decline, IDC said.

“New Internet-enabled mobile devices change the nature of users’ relationship with documents,” said Arnaud Gagneux, director for imaging hardcopy and document solutions ay Western Europe, IDC.

“This affects both consumers and businesses, and offers hardcopy vendors opportunities for growth in security, document solutions, and managed print services, to name a few.”

Roughly 95 million smartphones are expected to be sold in 2011, up more than 220 percent year on year. The massive uptake has already drastically changed the way users consult certain documents, reducing the need for printouts.

But this is only the tip of the iceberg, IDC noted. In the enterprise sector, the increasingly mobile workforce will create huge demand for IEMDs in the years to come, ignited by the global process of digitization and consumerization of IT.

As discussed in the study, media tablets will make their entrance in key vertical markets with dramatic consequences for document workflows. As a result it will be crucial for vendors to have a mobile and cloud printing solution strategy in place, IDC said.

“With information increasingly available in digital format at users’ fingertips, the entire hardcopy industry faces a real challenge,” said Mario Lombardo, senior analyst for imaging hardware devices at IDC.

“The boom in IEMDs, combined with the growth in cloud storage and digitization, is already set to change the rules of the game in the printing industry.”

But it is not all doom and gloom for the hardcopy industry. As outlined in the study, the growth in digital content will continue to create many opportunities in the document solutions area.

There will continue to be significant opportunities for print in select verticals, due to hardcopy document compliance and the use of business applications for which paper documents are still preferred.

The production printing space will also be greatly impacted by the digital revolution. With e-readers expected to generate a CAGR of 23.7 percent between 2011 and 2015, demand for e-books will be high.

Though this will negatively impact the analog printing market, demand for short runs will increase, favoring digital production printing, said IDC. — Newsbytes.ph

source:gmanetwork.com