HTC Announces Disappointing Quarterly Results

Last week, the Taiwanese smartphone maker, HTC Corp posted its first quarterly loss. The company is attempting to win sales from Samsung Electronics and Apple Inc. and said that the next two months would be the ‘biggest challenge’ that the company will face as yet. The Chairwoman of the company, Cher Wang said that they had the latest technology and is making the best product from it. The only thing that the company needs to work on is its communication with its consumers. HTC saw itself fall the most in a mere month and it has been slumping downwards this year as the share of the firm in the global smartphone market was reduced by half in the second quarter.

HTC is one of the biggest seller in the US and it is planning to redesign its flagship smartphone model called the HTC One and is making an attempt to promote its brand by hiring the renowned actor Robert Downey Jr. Since September 4th, the company’s share price saw its biggest decline when it plunged to NT$126 in Taipei trading. This year, the stock of the company has seen a decline of almost 58%. At its peak, the Taiwanese smartphone maker had been valued at about $37 billion, but this has been reduced to $3.7 billion.

HTC has been facing growing competition from Chinese smartphone makers in the less-expensive mobile division while the high-end market remains dominated by Samsung and Apple. In contrast with the market share of about 5.8% in the second quarter of last year, the company only had about 2.8% market share. Analysts have predicted that there is no possibility of a turnaround for the company with the smartphone market becoming saturated. They have stated that its devices aren’t good enough to compete with that of the rivals, whether future or existing.

A quarterly loss of NT$2.7 billion or $101 million was reported by the company for the three months ending in September. The average that had been expected by the analysts was exceeded by the actual results. The Chairwoman of the company stated that their communication was a problem and they were trying to clear the gap and improving their marketing and innovation as well. Currently, the company has pinned all its hopes on the HTC new and upcoming products and it is also hoping to halt its declining sales by building up on its franchise of HTC One.

It launched the HTC One Mini in August that has a more slender design and a smaller screen of 4.3 inch. The global smartphone market is currently dominated by Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics and they had a combined 43.5% share of the smartphone market in the second quarter of this year. In order to gain some traction in the market, the company has made a marketing deal with Robert Downey Jr., who is seen as a change maker. The company’s chairwoman said that he will be the right choice because HTC is here for change as well. It is yet to be seen if this strategy will work.

Your Fingertip Will Become A Credit Card With iPhone 5S

 

According to Apple Inc., passwords have become overly played out. Therefore, they have decided to tout a new fingerprint scanning system that they are naming Touch ID. This is one of the most prominent and new features that will be available to people when they purchase the upcoming iPhone 5S. The Cupertino, California giant has stated that phone security will be enhanced with Touch ID. This is because people will no longer have to use a four digit PIN for unlocking their phone. This time they would have to use their fingerprints. However, this new feature has another purpose. With Touch ID, people will be able to purchase stuff quickly at the App store and on iTunes.

When iPhone 5S users will browse the digital stores of Apple Inc., they will have the ability of purchasing items simply by pressing the home button instead of having to enter the password of their Apple IDs. This feature is said to be the first step into the world where purchases will be confirmed not by strings of letters and numbers, but will instead use our bodies for confirmation. An analyst of Apple at Edward Jones stated that this approach is interesting as far as e-commerce is concerned and is quite different from what other companies are trying to accomplish.

He added that the use of iTunes to kick off this technology is proof that the same technology could also be used for other applications as well. People have become attuned to the concept of using their smartphones for making online purchases. As per eMarketer, products are now bought and compared by around 75% of all smartphone users and the same group is expected to spend about $15 billion this year in mobile commerce. It is projected that by 2017, people will spend around $30 billion for purchasing stuff from their smartphones.

In the last quarter alone, Apple Inc. was able to generate about $4 billion revenue from its digital stores. That’s why the company wishes to ensure that this transition to mobile shopping happens as seamlessly as possible. This could happen with the simplicity that’s offered by Touch ID. According to analysts, this technology will be adopted by people if it’s effective because it’s unique, portable and doesn’t have to be memorized at all. Nevertheless, worries and issues regarding digital security cannot be alleviated with just a fingerprint scanner. Fingerprints can be copied of lifted with various technologies today.

People only have to touch things for exposing their fingerprints inadvertently. It can be copied easily and people will not even remember they accidentally touched something. It has been suggested that the best way of handling financial transactions is to use a two-step authentication process that requires a fingerprint scanner and also a PIN or password. The fingerprint scan is replacing the PIN option in the iPhone. But, Apple has stated that the fingerprint will be stored in the phone’s internal hardware and not in the cloud so it cannot be stolen and used to make purchases.

Apple Confirms iPhone Event on September 10

One of the most admired and respected companies in the US is Apple Inc. This American multinational corporation has its headquarters in Cupertino, California. It is currently the second largest information technology company of the world and the third largest mobile phone vendor. The company is renowned for its innovation and has launched various popular products like the iPod and Mac computers. However, the most successful element of its product line is the iPhone. The company launched the first model in 2007 and introduced the concept of smartphone. Since then, it has released several generations of the phone. The fifth one, iPhone 5 was introduced last year in September.

There have been considerable rumors and speculation that the company will be launching the iPhone 5S this year. Therefore, it doesn’t come as a surprise when the company confirmed that its next iPhone unveiling will be held at its headquarters on September 10th. However, an additional rumor indicates that the iPhone maker will also unveil a lower cost iPhone, which will be less powerful and will be known as iPhone 5C. It is said that this device will be available in a bevy of colors. The invitation shows off a variety of colors and promises that everyone’s day will be brightened up.

It is said that both of these new devices would be shipping the latest mobile operating system of the company. This is called the iOS7, which the company unveiled in June at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Apart from this invite, the company also sent one to Chinese journalists and publications for a follow-up event that would occur on September 11th. Speculation is dictating that the cheaper version of the iPhone would appeal to individuals who are currently using the older version of the iPhone. These devices are from the previous generations and therefore generate lower margins as compared to the current flagship iPhone.

It was announced by the tech company that in the second quarter, the company had managed to sell around 31.2 million phones. Sales of the iPhone 4 and the 4S remained strong throughout this quarter. Photos of the upcoming devices were also leaked and boasted a polycarbonate backed and budget friendly iPhone that’s available in a myriad of colors. Many have assumed that the C in the iPhone 5C stands for the word color. Meanwhile, the iPhone 5S is said to look like the iPhone 5 but will have updated material hardware and will be available in champagne and gold color.

The usual complement of improvements will be found in the device such as an enhanced camera and processor. However, it has been indicated by some reports that the phone will boast added security in the form of a fingerprint scanner, which can be accessed through the home button. Also, there are likely chances that the low-budget iPhone is targeting the China market, which is why the company is holding an individual event there. Nonetheless, people have their fingers crossed for the event that will be held after the unveiling of Samsung’s devices.

79% of Total Threats Comprise of Android Malware

One of the most important and influential industry today is the smartphone industry. It grew rapidly since the introduction of the first iPhone back in 2007. Nowadays, it is one of the most powerful industries that exist and is being dominated by American multinational Apple Inc. and South Korean giant Samsung Electronics. Samsung was able to make a play in the market thanks to Android operating system that belongs to Google Inc. Apple, in contrast, uses its own iOS. According to the latest survey and reports, almost 70% of the smartphones sold today are based on Android OS and it is highly popular.

However, law enforcement as well as government and security workers have been warned by the US Homeland and Security Department (DHS) regarding the use of the outdated versions of the Android OS of Google. According to the department, around 79% of all malware is targeting that platform as compared to others. The warning was issued by the DHS in a Roll Call Release for the US emergency services. The department stated that the reason for the criminal interest in this particular platform was driven by the huge market share it possesses and also because of its fragmented ecosystem and open architecture.

Proof was offered by citing high malware figures and agents were advised that they should use the latest software available when they are using smart devices like smartphones and tablets. The report said that it is crucial that the mobile operating system is kept up to date and patched up because the use of mobile devices by local, state and federal authorities seems to be growing. What’s more interesting is that despite the fact that it is all but defunct now, the ancient Symbian OS of Nokia is the second most popular target as 19% of mobile malware was specifically designed for it.

Although this figure is high, it is not an accurate of the interest of criminals in the system and it’s probably because of old malware instead of current dangerous threats. Symbian had been the top choice of criminals before Android had arrived because of its ties with Nokia, but the interest has waned as buyers are now interested in iOS and Android. Apart from these operating systems, the iOS of Apple and others were the victims of about 0.7% of the total mobile malware attacks. The bottom of the list comprises of Windows Phone and BlackBerry’s OS, which are the target of about 0.3% of the attacks.

Apple’s devices like the iPhone and the iPad enjoy considerable popularity, but the numbers of malware attacks are low. This is mostly because of the closed security model that’s used by the company. According to this model, developers have to use the App Store of Apple for selling their wares and the company doesn’t allow applications in the market place until it has vet all of them. The company has been praised for its tight security as it keeps the devices of users secure and is safer in comparison to others.

LG Takes on Samsung With New Smartphone

 

The smartphone market has grown rapidly in the past few years and has enabled a number of companies to make and break their fortunes while competing. Initially, the market was dominated by the likes of BlackBerry and Apple, but it lasted only until Google launched its Android Operating System. Since then, a myriad of companies have entered the market and have launched their phones. However, it is Samsung Electronics that has made the most of the OS and has reached the top of the smartphone market, even beating Apple Inc. with its Galaxy range of smartphones.

Even though other manufacturers have tried, but none of them have been able to challenge the success and dominance enjoyed by the Galaxy phones. But, now it seems that LG has finally managed to do so. The company has been striving hard to find a foothold in the ongoing smartphone battle taking place between various companies. The South Korean firm is determined to take on the flagship smartphones of its competitors like Samsung, HTC and Sony and has therefore launched its new smartphone called the G2, which boasts a Snapdragon 800 processor and was highly anticipated in the market.

According to the CEO and president of LG, Dr. Jong-seok Park, technology cannot be deemed innovation if it is without empathy. He made this statement at the launch of the G2. This new smartphone of the company has a 2GB RAM and a 2.26 GHZ quad-core processor. Optical image stabilization technology has been incorporated in the smartphone and it also has a 13 mega pixel camera on the rear end. Measuring 5.2 inch, the phone shows off an edge to edge screen. A 24 bit/192kHz sound is offered by the G2 in order to enhance the music and video experience of users. Apart from that, LG has also brought a change in the traditional design pattern by moving the physical buttons on the back instead of the front.

The model is operating on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. A lot of user friendly features have also been installed into the phone by the manufacturers such as the Answer Me sensing that will answer the calls automatically when it’s moved to the ear. No button will have to be pressed. A calendar event can also be created by a text link with the help of a simple text message if it comprises of information like time or location. The quick remote feature of the gadget also allows people to control all their electronic devices with the use of the infrared port.

The plug and plop feature of the G2 is also very useful as the former shows whether the device has been plugged into the right port and the latter shows the icons of the app that are most commonly used. A security feature is also part of the phone that will keep the data confidential when the device is with a second user. All 130 wireless carriers all over the globe will be offering the model in a couple of weeks.

BlackBerry Takes Fourth Place In The Smartphone Race

BlackBerry was once a force to be reckoned with in the smartphone market when there weren’t many players. However, in the past couple of years, BlackBerry has seen its market share erode with the introduction of the Android OS of Google Inc. Various other companies have entered the market since then and have gained a stable share. Things haven’t been looking up for the company. Nonetheless, not the one to give up, the Canadian smartphone maker came up with its own new line of smartphones.

BlackBerry had a lot of expectations with its new range of smartphones that it had launched according to the market demand. However, the phones did not garner much success and are still attempting to gain traction in the highly competitive and slowing down smartphone market. Currently, Apple and Samsung are the two firms that are leading this market, Apple with its iPhone and Samsung with its Galaxy range. BlackBerry, on the other hand, has been competing with the Windows Phone for the third place in the market.

But, in a bad turnaround of events for BlackBerry, it seems that Windows Phone has won that battle and the Canadian company has managed to cement the fourth position in the market. More and more data is indicating that the third place has been swapped by the Windows Phone. International Data Corporation (IDC), the research firm has provided this latest information, which indicates that in the second quarter of this year, a total of 6.8 million handsets were sold by the maker of BlackBerry. This is around 2.9% of the total smartphone sales. In comparison, last year, the company had had 4.9% market share and sold around 7.7 million handsets.

According to the firm, the level of BlackBerry sales had never come as low as the level they have reached since IDC had started keeping track of the sales of mobile phones. What’s worse is that the sales figure is a combination of the sales of the two smartphones that were supposed to revive the company; Z10 and Q10. As the sales of the company decline, Windows Phone seems to be climbing up. So far the year-on-year increase of the Windows Phone is about 77%. As compared to the 4.9 million headsets sold last year, this year the sales were about 8.7 million. The majority of the growth is because of the Nokia Lumia smartphones that contribute about 80% of the Windows Phone sales.

In the US, BlackBerry has managed to retain third position because it has around 4.4% market share. However, even this position seems to be in jeopardy. From March to June, the subscribership of BlackBerry decreased by 15%. Even more worrying is that with 3.1% market share, the Windows Phone is nipping at the heels of Blackberry, ready to take over the lead as soon as possible.

Apple Loses Title of Most Profitable Phone Maker

Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that is the renowned maker of the first smartphone i.e. the iPhone. Headquartered in Cupertino, California, the company introduced the iPhone in 2007 and gave rise to the smartphone market, which has grown rapidly over the past few years. For a couple of years, Apple remained dominant in the market, but with the launch of the Android OS, other companies also entered the market. None of this worried Apple until Samsung Electronics unveiled its Galaxy smartphones that have become a threat to the company’s iPhone. Now, the two teams are battling for a higher market share.

Although the battle between the two companies is still ongoing, it seems that the iPhone maker has lost another title to the South Korean giant. A well-known research firm called Strategic Analysis has stated that Apple Inc. is no longer said to be the most profitable smartphone maker today. This particular title has been usurped by none other than Samsung Electronics. The results of the second quarter of 2013 were released by the two companies in the past week. According to them, the South Korean tech giant managed to make global profits of around $5.2 billion while Apple’s profits from handset were about $4.6 billion.

The non-handset products are responsible for the difference between the numbers. It has been revealed by the research firm that high wholesale prices, tight cost controls and strong volumes are the secrets behind the success of the South Korean company. Competition from all over the world is said to be the major reason for the financial downfall of Apple Inc. The executive director of Strategy Analytics Neil Mawston stated that Apple Inc. is facing intense pressure for launching more models of the iPhone with larger screens and cheaper price points in order to recapture its market share and lost profits.

What’s more worrisome for the Californian firm is that Samsung is also managing to take over the Chinese market. It was announced by Apple Inc. earlier in this week that the profits of the company from China, including those from Hong Kong and Taiwan had fallen significantly. A decline of 43% was experienced by the company as its revenue from the area plummeted from $4.65 billion. In comparison to last year, the profits were nearly 14% lower. Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple spoke to analysts in a conference call and said that he wasn’t sure why profits were falling in China.

This means that it is quite obvious that Apple needs to take some steps if it wishes to remain competitive in the market. Right now, the smartphone market is worth $80 billion and Samsung holds 19% share in it. This is 10% more than Apple Inc. because the company has fallen to the fifth place. The smartphone market is expected to grow to $117 billion in a matter of four years. Apple’s CEO has said that they would be opening up some new retail stores of the company to provide greater exposure.

IDC: Apple and Samsung Losing Their Grip

The global smartphone market has undergone rapid growth in the past few years. Beginning with the launch of the first iPhone in 2007, the industry has become extremely widespread with smartphones from various companies topping the charts. However, even though there are several players in the market now, it remains dominated by two companies; Apple and Samsung. The American manufacturer and South Korean giant respectively hold considerable market share and are constantly striving hard to beat each other in the long run. Nonetheless, there have been statements made by analysts that the smartphone market has reached its peak and is now stable after growing rapidly.

However, the industry research outfit, IDC has stated that the two main players of the market i.e. Samsung and Apple are basically losing their grip on the smartphone market because other firms like Lenovo and LG are gaining market share gradually. Apple launched its iPhone 5 and Samsung introduced its Galaxy S4, but neither have been able to break or make records like their predecessors. The fiscal third quarter earnings were released by Apple Inc. this week that showed the company had managed to sell around 31.2 million smartphones in this three month duration. According to Apple, this is a record figure for this quarter.

But, IDC was quick to rain on Apple’s optimism by stating that the figures showed the second lowers growth of year on year, which has occurred in the past four years. In the second quarter, the iPhone maker only accounted for a 13.1% share in the smartphone market globally. With a 30.4% share, Samsung was way ahead of Apple Inc., but IDC still put a negative spin on the position of the South Korean firm in the global smartphone market. According to the estimates of the research firm, 72.4 million smartphones were shipped by Samsung in the second quarter.

Even though this figure seems impressive and was primarily driven by the success of the Galaxy S4 smartphone, it isn’t good enough because in comparison to the last quarter, the market share of the company declined by 2.4%. The research manager of IDC, Ramon Llamas said that a significant share of the market was held by Apple and Samsung, but they weren’t the only vendors. As a matter of fact, more vendors are targeting the high end smartphone market as new devices are being introduced and launches are being made.

He said that people would indeed be comparing the new devices with the iPhone and Galaxy phones, but the competition still refuses to bow out of the market. Some unlikely aspects have caused a slump in Apple and Samsung in the form of ZTE, Lenovo and LG. A larger year on year growth was enjoyed by these three firms quarterly as compared to their rivals. Llamas also ended that the opposite end of the spectrum cannot be ignored either as low cost smartphones have also managed to gain traction in the market. They are another reason why the high end devices of Apple and Samsung are suffering.

China Will Be Apple’s Biggest Market, Says Tim Cook

Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook was on a visit to China this week and was considerably impressed by the secondary market and its significance. He said that it’s very much possible that in the future the company might launch some of its Apple products in China. A Chinese government agency was told by Tim Cook that the United States might be taken over by China as the biggest market of Apple Inc. The CEO of the US giant gave an exclusive interview in Beijing. He clearly stated that the company is growing very rapidly and they will be making continuous investment in retail stores.

He added that the company had selected several sites for the stores and had a manufacturing base and partners as well. Currently, the company has a total of 11 retail stores that are spread around in Hong Kong, Beijing, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Shanghai. The largest retail store in Asia is the one that was opened last year in October in Beijing, in its commercial hub of Wangfujing. However, the CEO did not mention when exactly China would be taking over the United States. No comment could be obtained from the spokespersons of Apple in China.

According to the company, growth has slowed down a little in the last year even though in 2010 and 2011, sales of the products had doubled. The iPads, iPhones and other gadgets of Apple Inc. are an extreme hit with the highest-earning consumers of China. But the problem is that handsets using the Google Android operating system are dominating the fast growing smartphone market. The purpose of Cook’s visit was to attend meetings with managers of state-owned Unicom that is the first carrier of China to support the iPhone and also with the Chinese regulators.

However, the CEO made no response to the rumors that have been flying about the development of a low-end iPhone. He also met China Mobile’s chairman, which is the biggest phone carrier of the world and its subscribers has surpassed 700 million. The iPhone is not supported by China Mobile currently and it would Apple would greatly benefit if an agreement was made with the mobile phone carrier. The CEO also responded to the complaints that were being made at Foxconn regarding wages and work. This is the Taiwanese manufacturer responsible for assembling Apple’s products in Chinese factories.

More Details About HTC One Max

HTC Corp is a Taiwanese manufacturer of smartphones and tablets and is one of the major players in the market. Initially, the company had started out making smartphones that were based on the Windows Phone OS, but it didn’t take long for HTC to switch to Android operating system for its smartphones. However, the company seems to be struggling in the market as its facing heavy competition from Samsung and Apple. Earlier this year, the Taiwanese manufacturer had released its own flagship smartphone that was called the HTC One and the company had a lot of expectations regarding the phone.

From the sales figures, it can be assumed that the phone has become a success amongst customers. Therefore, HTC decided to launch a mid-range version of this phone, which is being released in the form of the HTC One Mini, quite similar to the Mini version that Samsung launches for its flagship smartphones. However, the Taiwanese manufacturer has decided to follow Samsung’s lead and is launching a third variant of their flagship phone. This is the HTC One Max, which has been tipped to have a large screen and will be competing with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 3.

Some new reports have come to light that have discussed the potential release date of this forthcoming phone from HTC. Some specifications of the handset have also been discussed. It is being said that the HTC One Max will have a release date in the third quarter because the company wishes to take its first steps in the expanding phablet market. An early September launch can be expected as it has been revealed by sources having an insight to the development process. It has also been reported that the Taiwanese manufacturer wishes to launch this phone ahead of the Note 3 that will be launched by its competitor.

The Note 3 has been given a release date on IFA 2013 and HTC might end up launching the phone at the end of August. Some super specification will be included in the HTC One Max according to the latest reports. The same high quality design will be maintained that has been shown on the other two variants of the phone. Apart from that, the new large screen is a feature that’s bound to draw the attention of the consumers and is said to be around 5.9 inches, which is considerable. A 1080 Full HD resolution will also be offered by the new device.

In the performance department as well, the phone is set to be impressive as it will boast a new Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 processing chip. The phone will be able to perform excellent multitasking and will have a very powerful RAM. However, it is not yet clear if HTC is planning to introduce the Stylus support with this phone. This technology has been used by the company before and is an inherent part of the Note 3 series of Samsung. Nonetheless, HTC really seems to be entering the phablet market with this innovative phone.

Report: BlackBerry Cuts Down Z10, Q10 Production by Half!

BlackBerry Ltd. is one of the players in the huge smartphone market that has taken the technology industry by a force. Previously known as Research in Motion Ltd, the company is based in Waterloo, Ontario and is the manufacturer of the BlackBerry smartphones. There was a time when these smartphones were highly coveted by patrons in the market, especially those looking for business phones. However, the launch of the iconic iPhone in 2007 seemed to be the bearer of bad news for the Canadian company. The iPhone marked the beginning of the smartphone era that spread far and wide and replaced regular mobile phones.

With the introduction of the Android Operating System of Google, more and more firms entered the smartphone market and ate up market share of other struggling companies. BlackBerry was one of those victims and it lost a lot of ground to the likes of Apple and Samsung, as did Nokia. Things seemed to be getting worse for the company and it started losing its loyal customer base. Therefore, it decided to delve into the smartphone market itself and introduced its make or break line in January of this year with the launch of the Z10. That’s when it also changed its name to represent its name.

However, the phone did not managed to make much impact in the market as there was too much competition. The Z10 had been a complete touch phone that had been launched to meet the demand of the market. The company then introduced another smartphone called the Q10 that was also based on its latest system. This was more like a typical BlackBerry phone, boasting the QWERTY keyboard that BlackBerry customers love. Although it fared well, but not well enough it seems. Recently, the company made the announcement of its quarterly results that caused its share price to plummet to dangerous levels.

This is due to the fact that the figures have completely missed out the market estimates and the predictions of the analysts, combined with the dismal reception of its smartphones. According to an analyst at Jeffries and Co, Peter Misek, the production of the Z10 and the Q10 has been reduced by half by the Canadian manufacturer. Previously, the company had been producing two million units of the smartphones, but the latest orders indicate that the company is planning to produce only 1 million units combined of both the smartphones.

The analyst also stated that he was surprised to learn that the company had made build plans in May despite the lackluster sales of its devices. That month, it had been rumored that the company had increased the production of the devices because of increased consumer demand. However, it is quite evident that the Blackberry Z10 and the Q10 aren’t good enough to turn the company’s fortunes around. The company is planning to launch a new OS7 device in various markets, especially in areas where the purchasing power of people doesn’t allow them to get the Z10 or Q10. The company is also working on a tablet that is expected in the next couple of months.

Samsung S4, iPhone 5S and Moto X Line Up For Price War

 

The beginning of this week sparked off much speculation about the smartphone’s future. The question is that has it peaked or not? It may have, but there is no doubt that competition is becoming intense, especially in the high and mid ranges. It was just released in a report that Google has given permission to Motorola to spend $500 million for the purpose of advertising its upcoming smartphone; the Moto X. Google is launching this smartphone against the products of Apple and Samsung and in a market where deals and price reductions are quite common.

There are doubts circulating around about the price range where the phone will be pitched by Google. The most likely price has been termed as $199. However, this price is suitable for a nudge-type product and that position has already been taken up by the Nexus smartphone of the company. The Moto X is expected to be a high end product and should be priced accordingly, regardless if the company intends to chase the lower end of the market later on. At the time when the Moto X and iPhone 5S go on sale in the market, Samsung Electronics is launching the Note 3, the third generation of its flagship phablet.

The summer and fall are going to be tough due to which, Samsung is already using an aggressive pricing strategy for its latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S4. The South Korean company is just looking to preserve its market share. In many locations, the S4 has become cheaper than the iPhone even though it has a higher cost of production. The extra margin is being used by Samsung in its new S4 family where the cost of key components is lower. The company wishes to make a statement about price instead of grabbing more profit from its premium range of smartphones.

At the time of the April launch of the Galaxy S4, the price of the smartphone had been around $895, but it has come down to around $700 since then. What’s more is that it is expected that eager customers will dole out the same sum for the Galaxy S4 Active, which is expected to release soon. In comparison, the cost of the iPhone 5 is $790 for the 16GB version while the 64GB version costs around $1000. As compared to the iPhone, the original S4 is now $90 cheaper.

Samsung wants to capture big market share in India, which is one of the emerging markets. Therefore, the company launched the S4 Mini this week, which carries a price tag of just $465. The S4 Zoom was also launched for a price of $500. A regular S4 has a price of $600 in India. Samsung has declared that it wants the new S4 to contribute about 20% of the total profit that it earns from India. The pricing strategy of Samsung is aided by downgrading the cameras, chips and displays in the new S4 family and this seems to be working.

Smartphone Profitable, But Becoming Saturated; Analysts

Cell phones became popular a few years back, but they didn't reach the extreme height of popularity came with the launch of smartphones in 2007. That’s when the market really stated booming and it became a flood of smartphones. However, just like the rise came the fall or the semi-fall. It seems that the popularity might be waning just a little bit, especially of flagship phones that carry very expensive price tags. Analysts believe that this is really happening and the smartphone market has become saturated. They have cited the weaker than expected performance from the devices of HTC Corp and Samsung Electronics and also the entry of Apple Inc. in the low-level market that was deemed to be impossible.

The biggest example is that in the high-end market multiple devices have been introduced by Samsung that share almost the same and confusing names. In comparison, HTC is playing a very Apple-like game of releasing only one or two devices. That makes a total of 7 phones in the high-end market and based on the Android operating system. If we start counting all the smartphones that are based only on the Android ecosystem alone, it’s going to become a very huge list.

Apart from that, Nokia is launching its own take of smartphones that are based on the Windows Operating system. Hence, if slowdown is being experienced by HTC and Samsung then the analysts can only imagine the share of market possessed by Nokia, which is using the single-digit market share owned by the Windows Phone. Not only is this the situation, but there is another problem rising. There is intense competition in the flagship room where there are plenty of expensive smartphones. What’s more is that HTC, Apple, Samsung and other smartphone manufacturers also have to contend with the rising number of cheap smartphones.

Therefore, it’s unsurprising to discover that Nokia, Samsung and even Apple are competing in this space as well. According to the research carried out, expensive smartphones are gaining as much popularity in emerging markets. For instance, in most emerging markets like India and China, phones that have price tags between $150 to $300 are in great demand. This fact is known by the mobile manufacturers and they are designing phones accordingly. It has been said by analysts that there is no doubt that expensive phones are still desired by people.

However, manufacturers have to understand that if they wish to generate additional revenue, they will also have to participate in the cheap game. This means bad news for most smartphone companies, but it’s the worst for Apple. This means that the company will have to dump their super premium image if they want to retain the positivity in their profits. The smartphone market has become saturated for now and if things don’t pick up, it may eventually start declining even more severely. This could lead to heavy losses, especially for the small players in the market who have a lot riding on the smartphones and may end up going bankrupt.

About Author | TechBurgeon Team

The author is a Technology News Writer working and is associated with TechBurgeon.com.

How to Download the Original Mobile App When There are So Many Sellers

Developing apps for the mobile phone is a business rapidly getting popular and is considered to be the most profitable business. This is true because according to a survey it is proven that apps development is a business of high scale. Apps distributors help the apps company to advertise and sell their products. So, they have a share in the price of the product. Below is some detail of mobile apps sales and downloading from different distributors:

• If we talk about the eBay, it has earned $600 million in 2009 while it reached $2 billion in 2012.
• Debenhams introduced android and Nokia apps and they earned £1M within the time of just 5 months of its launch and its downloading reached to 360, 000.
• Apple apps store opened on July 10 2008 and till the time January 2011, the apps downloading helped it make 10 billion USD. Apple app stores have even more than 700,000 apps available on their store and have 30 billion app download from their app stores.
• Blackberry app world is app store for Blackberry mobile phones. They are having the revenue of $9,166.67 per app as compared to the apple and the android having $6,480 and $1,200 respectively.
• Google play is offering 700,000 apps and the number of application downloads reached to the 25 billion till 2012.

This was a simple review but things are much more critical and data is very high. Every mobile user wants to approach the original mobile apps. They want exact app for their mobile, but a huge expulsion in the field of apps development makes it difficult for an inexperienced person or a new person to reach the original app. There are some tips to get access to the original app:

1. Firstly check the number of downloads of the mobile apps. A well known and original app has a good number of downloads. If a product has less than 100 downloads, you must think about it. 
2. Be sure that the apps developing company is not using template as compared to the original one.
3. The slandered apps have long time upgrade facility. The closed off apps are not reliable because they are not able to meet the requirement of the approaching time.
4. Try to use the apps of an app company which has made a good repute and is believed to work creatively and adjust the product according to users' budget. Some companies work quantitatively and not pay attention on quality. This is good for them not for the user.
5. Try to have some cross platform mobile applications. Cross platform means the apps which can work on more than one type of operating systems.

The Apps development is a new step of success in the progress of various companies. New minds and new ideas of the developers help introduce new apps every day in the app stores. There are many companies that come up with revolutionary apps very now and then. If you make a little effort, you can always easily find original apps for your phone.

Irish Tax Holiday A Boon For Apple From The Start

Based in Cupertino, California, Apple has had its offices in other countries as well, including Ireland. Since 1980, Apple has been able to carry out its operations without paying any tax. This is primarily due to the fact that the government of Ireland was keen to bring jobs in the country. Ireland had been included in the list of one of the poorest countries of Europe, according to the Irish officials and former executives.

Criticism was faced by chief executive of Apple Inc. Tim Cook from a Senate subcommittee over the tax practices of the iPad and iPhone maker. The company’s practices had been shrouded from public view because of the other corporate entities that are secretive and tax-exempt. One of the top multinational employers of Ireland, Apple denied the allegations that it had avoided paying billions of dollars in the form of US taxes. Instead, the company said that various research jobs had been funded in the United States, all thanks to the iPhone maker.

However, it was revealed by the Senate committee that the Irish companies of Apple were not tax resident in any jurisdiction and therefore, the company was not paying any tax on most of its overseas earnings in the past few years. The chairman of subcommittee, Senator Carl Levin stated that ‘Holy Grail of tax Avoidance’ had been created by the company.  A former executive of the company and the Irish officials said that the iPhone maker had enjoyed this status of being tax free in Ireland since it entered the country almost thirty-two years ago. For both Cork and Ireland, Apple may have seemed extremely attractive.

This is due to the fact that the unemployment in Cork had been on the rise and its economy was under huge threat. Apple’s staff had had the habit of having meals together in the early days of the company. Now, Apple has become the biggest multinational employer of Ireland and employs around 4000 people. The Vice President of Apple in the 1980s said that the tax concessions for going to Ireland had been very lucrative. Another executive said that for the first 10 years, the company had enjoyed a tax holiday and had not paid any tax at all. Nevertheless, Apple wasn’t the first company to get this concession, although it did take advantage of it the most.

Apple Inc., on the other hand, has stated that it pays all its tax dues in whichever country it operates. Furthermore, the company declined to make any comment on its tax treatment in the 1980s. Payment of tax had become compulsory for companies in Ireland in 1980, but at a lower rate. Regardless, the investment of Apple Inc. had proved to be a major coup for the country because it had been suffering from low rates of employment. Low wage rates of workers were another attractive factor for the American firm.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Reaches 10 Million Sales Mark

Based in Suwon, South Korea, Samsung Electronics is one of the well-recognized companies of the world and has become a force to be reckoned with in the global mobile phone market, rivaling the likes of Apple Inc. It is regarded as the largest information technology company of the world and is also the largest vendor in the mobile and smartphone markets. The company is also dominating in various other industries. Samsung shot to popularity in the smartphone market when it launched its Galaxy line of smartphones. The Galaxy S3 became the best-selling phone of 2012 as it racked up impressive sale figures.

On 27th April 2013, Samsung Electronics introduced its next smartphone in the Galaxy S series, the Samsung Galaxy S4. Before its launch, there had been considerable hype about the successor of the S3 and there had been speculation whether it would be able to meet expectations or not. According to the latest sales figures and reports coming in, the Galaxy S4 has fulfilled the number of predicted sales of the South Korean manufacturer. It was announced by the manufacturer that the device has topped the sales mark of 10 million in record time. It has been less than a month since the smartphone was launched and it has reached its expected sales figure.

The South Korean electronics giant stated that the Galaxy S4 had managed to set a new record for the company as it had managed to generate sales even quicker than all of its predecessors. Also, the company had added that according to its estimates, the device is selling at a very fast rate of four units per second. As compared to the Galaxy S4, its predecessor, the Galaxy S3 had taken approximately 50 days in order to reach the 10 million mark. The same number had been achieved by the S and S2 in seven and five months respectively.

This newest addition to the four-year old Galaxy franchise of smartphones may be useful for the company in maintaining the leadership it has been holding in the $294 billion global smartphone market. This can be useful for the company amidst the rising competition it has been facing from Huawei Technologies Co. and LG Electronics Inc. and even from Apple Inc. that had managed to sell five million units of the iPhone 5 in three days of release of the phone. However, Apple isn’t expected to launch a new phone until the next quarter of the year.

In the first quarter of 2013, Samsung was holding 31.7% of the global market share and was considerably ahead of the 17.3% held by Apple and 4.7% of LG. According to the IDC and other research firms, the market share of Samsung, Huawei and LG improved this year while Apple’s declined. However, the share of Apple in sales value is higher because the company is known for selling high value devices. The Galaxy S4 has received mixed reviews from the critics since its release where most critics are calling the device a disappointment in comparison to S3

BlackBerry Armed For Battle of Smartphones

 

Chief Executive of BlackBerry Ltd, Thorsten Heins has no doubt about where the battle of smartphones will be waged for the upcoming years. He has spent the last 18 months trying to turn the floundering company around. According to the CEO, the most innovative and competitive market is the US because that’s where the real wars are being waged. The other location is the emerging markets where the battle seems to be intensifying over time. This opinion was expressed by Mr. Heins this week at the BlackBerry keynote conference. The first salvos were fired by the Waterloo-Ontario based company earlier this year for regaining its lost market share in the form of the Z10 and Q10 smartphones.

The second volley came this week in Orlando when the Q5 smartphone was revealed by BlackBerry. The company is hoping that this particular smartphone will appeal to the middle-class customers that exist in emerging markets such as Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. The price point of the smartphone hasn’t been announced by the company as yet, but it is expected to be rolled out in all the emerging markets in July of this year. The aim of the company is to recapture the magic of the Curve. This was the company’s best-selling smartphone based on the old operating system.

With this smartphone, BlackBerry is taking on lower priced models of smartphones that are sold by other companies in the market. Heins explained that the company has to build a complete portfolio that completes all the price ranges that exist in the market. For now, the company doesn’t have any plans of launching the Q5 phone in North America, but plenty of attention was attracted by this budget-priced smartphone at the annual conference of the company in Orlando. White, red, pink and black versions of the Q5 were displayed at a booth in the conference trade.

The onlookers were curious about the phone and wished to feel, touch and fiddle with the smartphone. A BlackBerry retail carrier trainer, Matthew Clark said that they had been given a separate booth at the conference and they were the busiest people there. A slightly weaker processor is boasted by the Q5 and it has a less memory capacity. Unlike the eight megapixels camera on the Z10 and Q10, this model has a 5 megapixel camera and its casing is also cheaper than the other models.

Moreover, the phone is also lighter as it weighs only 120 grams as compared to the 139 gram of Q10. However, the most striking feature of the handset is the BlackBerry keyboard. The keyboard of the Q10 was different and resembled that of a guitar. In contrast, the keyboard boasted by Q5 is similar to the renowned keyboards of the BlackBerry Bold and Curve line of smartphones. It was explained by a BlackBerry employee that some of the roots of the previous operating system of the company had been incorporated in the new smartphone. Nonetheless, it has the new BlackBerry 10 operating system and has excited the public.

Apple Missing Out On Countless iPhone Customers!

One of the most prominent companies of the world is Apple Inc. This American multinational corporation sells computer software, consumer electronics and personal computers. Some of its renowned products include its music player iPod, tablet computer iPad and line of computers called Mac. However, the company shot to popularity because of its launch of the first smartphone called the iPhone in 2007. The company has earned a solid position in the global mobile phone market and is also the second-largest technology company of the world. Nonetheless, it seems that Apple is still missing out on even more iPhone customers that it can have.

Apple Inc. has posed such conditions for the wireless-service providers, which have caused most of them to balk and drag their heels when it comes to signing on as partners. As a result, the iPhone maker is losing out on around 2.8 billion new smartphone users and a large number of them are in Asia. Since September 2011, the new iPhone is being sold by only 240 wireless-service providers and this list includes only a dozen new ones. Holdouts include approximately billions that could be potential subscribers and they are in countries like Russia, India, Japan and China.

In contrast, Apple’s direct competitor, Samsung Electronics uses around 800 carriers all over the world for selling its devices to customers. The world’s biggest phone company is China Mobile Ltd. and Japan’s largest mobile carrier NTT DoCoMo Inc. is included in the list of providers who aren’t selling the iPhone to people. This is due to the fact that a high number of subsidies would be required to make the device affordable and they also find the terms set by Apple unacceptable. The growth of iPhone sales is becoming stagnated due to the showdown in getting new partners for selling the device.

Moreover, this is providing Samsung and other rivals a potential advantage and is pressurizing the Cupertino based company to make concessions that threaten the market or come up with a cheaper version of the iPhone. The company has been focused on consumer demand, but it now needs to shift its focus to the operators because Apple is running out of operators who will agree with them. The gross margin of the company is narrowing as it was 47.4% last year, but fell to 37.5% in the last quarter. This is because the company is selling more of its products that are less profitable and less of its iPhone.

The dearth of new carriers became evident in regard to Apple in the last quarter when there was only a 7% increase in the smartphone sales. This marked the smallest growth in sales since the introduction of the first iPhone in 2007. Furthermore, it was considerably less because the overall smartphone market grew by 36%. In comparison, there had been an 88% increase in iPhone sales in the same period last year. More than half of the company’s sales are of the iPhone and this slowdown has led to serious consequences for the company.

BlackBerry Q10 Sold Out in Britain and Canada; Analyst!

Formerly known as Research in Motion Ltd, BlackBerry Ltd is a Canadian wireless and telecommunication equipment company, which is well-known all over the globe because of its BlackBerry line of smartphones. The company was once a pioneer in the smartphone industry and its devices were in high demand. However, tough competition caused the company to lose its lead in the market and it fell behind. Nevertheless, the company attempted to make a comeback with its BlackBerry 10 line that was launched in January of this year. The first device was the Blackberry Z10 that was a touch smartphone like its competitors.

The second is the Q10, which is more like the traditional BlackBerry smartphones. The response to Z10 wasn’t very positive, but the same cannot be said for the Q10. The physical keyboard of this smartphone is a prize feature for the fans of the Canadian smartphone maker. According to an industry analyst, the phone is selling quite well in both Britain and Canada after its introduction this week. Peter Misek, an analyst of Jefferies said that there were broad sellouts of the phone and stock was becoming limited quite fast. Store checks have indicated that the BlackBerry Q10 has been sold out in some stores or has limited availability in the UK and Toronto.

A ‘buy’ rating has been placed on BlackBerry’s shares by Jefferies and according to the research firm it had used top retailers and mobile carries in both the countries for collecting its data. Some of the important names include Orange, Vodafone and Carphone Warehouse in Britain and Telus, Rogers and Bell in Canada. The Canadian company is hoping that its new smartphones will help it in gaining back market share that it had lost to Samsung Electronics’ Galaxy devices and Apple Inc.’s iPhone. The shares of BlackBerry have also been rallying positively.

This report of Jeffries came only a day after the BlackBerry 10 devices and Samsung mobile devices were given security clearance by the Pentagon for being used on the US defense department networks. It was also announced by Pentagon earlier this week that it would also be clearing the devices of Apple Inc. that were based on the iOS 6 system at some point in the month of May. This move by Pentagon will set the stage for a furious battle between Samsung, Apple and BlackBerry for the orders of the defense department. So far, this segment has been completely dominated by BlackBerry.

The Pentagon stated that the purpose of opening up its networks to a wide array of mobile devices is simply an effort to ensure that the latest telecommunication technology can be accessed by the military instead of restricting itself to a specific equipment vendor. The approval of the Pentagon was of the utmost importance to BlackBerry because it paves way for the company to market its devices to other security-conscious financial, legal and government clients. It was announced by Clifford Chance, the international law firm last week that around 1600 BlackBerry 10 smartphones would be given to its employees.

Smartphones Rising Over ‘Dumb’ Phones!

It was Apple Inc. that introduced the first smartphone in the year 2007 in the form of an iPhone. Since then, the mobile industry has been revolutionized. The launch of the smartphone marked the greatest ever expansion of the mobile market and turned the tables for every company that was currently a player in it. From the top mobile phone maker of the world, Nokia Corp took a tumble down as its mobile phones lost the popularity they had retained for several years. Now, it is Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics reigning in the mobile industry, which is mostly regarded as the smartphone market.

Dumb phones are still being manufactured; there is no doubt about that. However, they are no match to the success and demand, which smartphones enjoy nowadays. As a matter of fact, IDC, the research firm recently announced that this year i.e. 2012, more smartphones are being produced as compared to dumb phones. This is a huge milestone because it marks a shift that is putting internet access and computing power into the hands of millions of people all around the globe. In the first three months of the current year, a total of 216 million smartphones were shipped by manufacturers worldwide. In comparison, 189 million regular phones were shipped in the same period.

According to the latest study of IDC, of the 419 million smartphones that were shipped worldwide, smartphones made up around 51.6% of them. In the year 2011, regular phones were overtaken by smartphones in the US market. It was stated by an analyst of IDC that this greater shift towards smartphones was contributed by the consumers that reside in developing countries like Indonesia, China and India. ABI research, another research firm discovered that 49% of the shipments in the first quarter were of smartphones.

The largest mobile phone maker of the world, Samsung Electronics does not provide a breakdown of the number of phone shipments it makes. Therefore, the totals and estimates of the analysts vary. However, even going by the numbers revealed by ABI research, it is quite clear that this year; the market will be taken over by the smartphones. The cellphone industry has been roiled completely from the move of people from phones used for calling and texting to the ones used for pretty much everything with their advanced operating systems and unique touch screens. Nokia had been the world’s largest maker of mobile phones for over a decade, but it wasn’t able to achieve the same success with smartphones.

It holds the second position, after Samsung as the largest mobile phone maker, but falls a lot below in the list of the top smartphone makers. A US company, Motorola Mobility has also failed in the transition and has been taken up by Google. Apple Inc., on the other hand, has managed to become the third largest mobile phone maker in the period of six years since it launched its first iPhone. The top makers of smartphones are Apple Inc. and Samsung Electronics, but the third position is being fought over by various companies.