Hi Ron,
"Appears they have some major plans for the operations in Dongguan - Kwanasia & Kwanta. Wondering what other companies might be expanding there?" I wouldn't know and I am questioning my comfort level with the assumption that this expansion is in anticipation of imminent orders. It has been their pattern in the past.
On another topic: here is a stab in the dark about who "The Customer" for GSM phone molds might be. Improbable but, hey, its worth a shot.
Sony targets global cell-phone market
By Reuters
Special to CNET News.com
June 20, 2000, 5:05 a.m. PT
TOKYO--Sony aims to fill in the last missing piece of its grand electronic networking strategy by becoming a top maker of cell phones and mobile computing devices, Sony chief operating officer Kunitake Ando said today.
Ando, who will also become Sony's president later this month, said in an interview that the company, with a tiny 2 or 3 percent share of the global cell-phone market, aims to boost that tenfold in the long term by launching unique products.
"Sony now has more than a 20 percent share in the 10 trillion yen ($95 billion) global market for audiovisual products, and it would be hard for us to boost that to 30 to 40 percent," Ando told Reuters.
"But in the cell-phone market, where we'll have only a 2 or 3 percent share (this year), it's natural for us to see as much as a tenfold rise, although doing so will take a long time."
Ando said Sony is likely to introduce a new cellular phone equipped with its tiny Memory Stick device and offering the personal-stereo functions of its ubiquitous "Walkman."
He gave no further details of the new product but said he wants to bring to market cell-phones and mobile computing devices that will allow easy access to music, film and other content via the Internet, especially targeting the era of broadband, or high-speed, Internet access, in 2003 and beyond.
Handheld Internet gadgets
Ando also said Sony plans to launch a new handheld entertainment and computing device in Japan in September and in the United States a month later, using application software developed by U.S. handheld company Palm.
Mobile devices are viewed as a strategic piece of Sony's drive to lead the development of home digital networks that link digital televisions, set-top boxes and other devices.
Ando said Sony would sell some 8 million cellular phones this year, mainly in Europe, and plans to return to the U.S. cell-phone market in 2001 or 2002 after withdrawing last year.
He is set to become Sony's president on June 29, while retaining his post as COO. The current president, Nobuyuki Idei, will become chairman and remain chief executive officer.
Ando will be in charge of Sony's electronics operations, while Idei will take charge of overall strategy for the Sony group.
Analysts viewed the promotion of Ando, who earned his reputation building up Sony's successful Vaio line of personal computers, as signaling its determination to bolster its digital networking strategy for home electronics.
Ando said "there are no specific plans" to ally with global media companies such as Japanese broadcaster Fuji Television Network or German media giant Bertelsmann. Sony may join hands with cable TV operators such as Microsoft, he added, a move analysts say would ensure the firm solid broadband infrastructure.
The troublesome yen
Ando said the global manufacturer's heavy exposure to foreign currency swings remained a big problem for its earnings, but it hopes to ease the damage from the strong yen by boosting overseas output and increasing foreign currency-based settlements.
But, he said, "the ultimate solution to the problem is to boost the company's price competitiveness."
Sony's group net profits sagged 32 percent in the last business year, weighed down by the strong yen and the costs of launching its PlayStation2 game console in March.
The yen's appreciation eroded the yen-based value of its overseas revenues, which comprise 70 percent of total sales.
Sony shares closed up $1.50, or 1.7 percent, at $91.75 yesterday on the New York Stock Exchange. In Japanese trading, the stock ended today up 100 yen (95 cents), or about 1 percent, at 9,800 yen ($92.77).
Their value slipped more than 40 percent from an all-time high in early March of 16,950 yen ($160.46), adjusted for a 2-for-1 share split, as investors grew increasingly edgy about the high valuations of so-called New Japan info-tech stocks.
"I think my mission is to ensure fruitful achievements in a year or two to satisfy shareholders. I don't want to overreact to share price fluctuations, and I believe by fulfilling my duty, the price will eventually rebound," said Ando.
Nikko Salomon Smith Barney yesterday lowered its target price for Sony to 10,340 yen ($97.89) from 16,000 yen ($151.49), saying the market was shifting its focus to firms' actual profit-earning power, rather than future potential based on the Internet. |
