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To: djane who wrote (3288)	3/6/1999 12:25:00 AM
From: djane	Respond to of 29987

Wireless phone sales soar teledotcom.com •February 17, 1999 • By Mary Mosquera, TechWeb THE POPULARITY OF digital mobile phones drove worldwide wireless sales 51 percent higher in 1998 from the previous year. Similar demand is anticipated for this year, said Dataquest, the research arm of Gartner Group. Finland's Nokia, whose products have been adapted to all digital standards, sold more wireless phones than any other company. Western Europeans bought almost twice as many mobile phones as the United States, the data showed. "[Nokia's sets] were created from an intelligently conceived market-segmentation plan that looked to consumer desire for inspiration, not simply engineering ability," said Peter Richardson, principal analyst for Dataquest's mobile-communications worldwide program. ……………………………………………………… A record 162.9 million wireless phones were sold worldwide in 1998 -- 51 percent more than the 107.8 million in 1997. ……………………………………………………… Nokia captured 22.9 percent of the market in 1998, toppling last year's leader Schaumburg, Ill.-based Motorola, which held on to 19.8 percent of the market, followed by Sweden's Ericsson, with 14.6 percent. Motorola, which went through reorganization last year, is now set to offer more phones and accessories. Richardson expects them to put the lessons of last year to work and bounce back with a stronger 1999. Ericsson also had a bumpy 1998 bringing out a variety of products, he said. Motorola and Cisco recently announced that they plan to invest as much as $1 billion jointly over four to five years to deliver a wireless Internet. The increasing demand for wireless products and services means companies must offer more variety and consumer features to retain their share of the market, the analyst said. Richardson cited the strength of second-tier wireless companies such as Panasonic and Alcatel. Panasonic, with a strong consumer-electronics brand, has done well in Japan and the European home market. A record 162.9 million wireless phones were sold worldwide in 1998 -- 51 percent more than the 107.8 million in 1997. Mobile phone users in Western Europe bought 32.5 percent, the United States bought 17.1 percent, and Japan accounted for 16.5 percent of the total. In 1999, worldwide sales may jump another 45 percent, Richardson said. Wireless growth will come as a result of serving large populations in emerging economies, the analyst said. Wireless phones that are able to offer higher data rates, more sophisticated transfer of data, and advanced Internet services on third-generation systems are a real possibility in 1999, Richardson said. Wireless carriers are also targeting young people living with their parents who use their mobile phones as local phones. "When they get to the point of moving out, the propensity is to not take on a wireline phone," he said. "Young people are more at ease technically, and as costs fall, there will be no reason to get a fixed line." Emerging markets with no embedded wired infrastructure for large numbers of population -- such as India -- are using wireless technology. "It may start out being the village pay phone, but the technology is being used to roll it out and will result in greater penetration," Richardson said.