Tuesday February 27 5:20 PM ET
Qualcomm Sees Delays, Growth, Competition
SAN DIEGO (Reuters) - Qualcomm Inc. (NasdaqNM:QCOM - news)
executives on Tuesday acknowledged delays in some next generation wireless
services and emerging competition, but said it was optimistic of growth in
emerging markets for its mobile technology.
Speaking at an annual meeting with shareholders, Chief Executive Irwin Jacobs
said Qualcomm remains confident of a growing market for its patented CDMA
(news - web sites) technology, citing early uses in China and promising
adoption in India and Latin America.
Still, economic jitters helped pull shares lower on the Nasdaq, to close off 11.8
percent or $7-7/16 to $55-5/8.
Qualcomm owns patents for CDMA, code division multiple access (CDMA) wireless technology, a standard for
mobile communication that competes globally with GSM networks.
It is the leading developer of chips used in CDMA phones, but President Richard Sulpizio acknowledged that
Qualcomm expects new competitors.
``We are going to have competition,'' he said. ``We will be the major provider if we continue to roll out multi-use
chips ... and so long as we don't become complacent.''
Jacobs said he was optimistic of the likelihood that China would sign contracts to use CDMA by the end of the
year. He added that CDMA use in India was also poised to grow.
Uncertainty over whether or not China will adopt CDMA has led to volatility in Qualcomm's share price, as
penetration in China has been seen as an area for considerable revenue growth.
Jacobs reiterated that W-CDMA could be delayed until 2003 or as late as 2005, due to compatibility and testing
concerns, but said that Qualcomm's favored CDMA version, known as cdma2000, was already being used.
``We've taken the conservative view that it could be delayed until 2003 or as late as 2004 or 2005,'' Jacobs said.
``There are alternative 3G (third generation) technologies,'' he added, pointing to cdma2000.
Shares of Qualcomm have weakened in the past week to their lowest levels since October 1999, after Jacobs
noted at a conference in Cannes, France that W-CDMA would not be commercially viable for several years.
Qualcomm's stock hit a record high of $200 in January 2000. |
