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Strategies & Market Trends : Technical analysis for shorts & longs -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Johnny Canuck who wrote (39877)	7/10/2003 1:24:50 PM
From: Johnny Canuck	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 71935

Motorola Says 'Three Horrific Years' Are Over 7/10/03 9:02 AM Source: Reuters By Kirstin Ridley FARNBOROUGH, England (Reuters) - U.S. mobile phone manufacturer Motorola Inc. said on Thursday it expected "three horrific years" in the wireless network market to end in 2004 with a four percent rise in industry sales. "I think the last few weeks have begun to give people confidence that we've reached the inflection point," Adrian Nemcek, the executive vice president of Motorola's mobile networks, told Reuters while on a trip to England. As some of Europe's top telecoms operators cut debts, costs and spending to restore investor faith in their business models, the $40 billion wireless networks market is expected to see sales fall by six to 12 percent this year. Sales plunged by around 20 percent in 2002 and by 10-11 percent in 2001. But Nemcek expects that emerging markets such as China and India, where Motorola is one of the top two players, will help propel network sales growth four percent higher in 2004, followed by "slow, steady, single-digit growth" thereafter. "After three horrific years... four percent sales growth on a global basis is not a big disagreement with (European) operators, which might be forecasting flat investments," he said. "China is still the largest cellular market in the world. Motorola expects "insatiable demand" for mobile phones in less mature markets such as China, India and South America to account for around 80 percent of new customers by 2010, almost trebling the number of mobile subscribers to 2.8 billion, he said. Most European mobile operators, shaken by a precipitous fall in share prices since a technology bull market ended in 2000, have delayed costly launches of new, high-speed, third-generation mobile services by three years until 2004. But Motorola expects them to place more orders for kit. "We know they have to spend. But they can't publicly commit to that, because it's bad for their share prices," Nemcek said. The Chicago-based group, which plans to cut another $3.0 billion of costs in 2003 and 2004 as slowing demand for wireless equipment is compounded by a weak global economy, is also banking on new products to help drive profits. It is running trials in Jordan of its so-called "push to talk" radio-based communication services and expects to start selling services outside the United States in early 2004. Motorola has also clinched its first contractual commitments for its "soft switches," which help route mobile phone calls over fixed-line networks, but declined to give further details. Soft switches need less physical space, less power to operate and can be deployed more quickly than current circuit switches. Switches account for about 20-30 percent of the telecoms equipment market. E-mail story \| Printer-friendly version \| Send us news tips [Harry: I am not sure I buy these statements. Given the guidance from NOKA in the previous article and the fact that re-furbished phones seemed to big business at the last few CES shows, I think sales of new phones to underdeveloped countries will still be slower than expected. Prices is an issue in those countries as opposed to quality of services, that is why UTSI is stealing market share from LU and NT in those markets.]