Sony Ericsson

Sony Ericsson tunes up trio of new Walkman phones

Jason Ankeny — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:26:23 -0400

Sony Ericsson announced three new Walkman music phones and related accessories, promising superior sound quality as well as a range of new multimedia features. The new W902 Walkman boasts capacity for 8,000 songs as well as a five megapixel camera and video capturing and sharing capabilities, while the W595 Walkman stores more than 1,900 songs for playback via built-in stereo speakers, complete with sharing across a series of Bluetooth wireless speakers. The W302 Walkman targets more general audiences, offering a two megapixel camera, FM radio and the TrackID music recognition application. Sony Ericsson also touted new mobile apps like SensMe, which matches a user's mood to music, and Shake, which enables users to change tracks with a flick of the wrist. All three Walkman models will be available in selected markets by the end of 2008.

For more on the new Walkman phones:
- see this slideshow of the Walkman phones
- read this release

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Handango inks apps deal with Sony Ericsson
Sony Ericsson unveils motion gaming phone

Handango inks apps deal with Sony Ericsson

Jason Ankeny — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 18:08:18 -0400

Smartphone applications provider Handango announced a worldwide agreement with Sony Ericsson to bring content direct to consumers on all of the device maker's convergence phones, including the Windows Mobile-based Xperia X1 and its UIQ handsets. Handango's InHand clients will offer users a variety of productivity, games, imaging and music apps designed for optimal performance across the Sony Ericsson convergence phone portfolio--the Xperia XI will boast an embedded, Handango-branded Windows Mobile 6.1 InHand client. In addition, Handango will serve as the content provider for Sony Ericsson's mobile web storefront for UIQ devices, and by year's end will offer its InHand mobile client embedded on all UIQ devices.

For more on the Sony Ericsson/Handango deal:
- read this release

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Sony Ericsson unveils motion gaming phone
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Sony Ericsson unveils motion gaming phone

Jason Ankeny — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 09:06:46 -0400

Sony Ericsson announced a series of new mobile devices, most notably the F305 with Motion Gaming, which employs Wii-like technology enabling users to control gameplay with a flick of the wrist or a swing of the arm. Also boasting horizontal gameplay and dedicated gaming controls, the F305 uses motion sensor technology to imitate actions like throwing a bowling ball or casting a fishing rod--three motion games are preloaded on the device, with additional motion games developed by Gameloft now available via Sony Ericsson's PlayNow arena alongside dozens of 2D and 3D titles. The quad-band EDGE phone also includes a 2.0 megapixel camera, 176 x 220 TFT display resolution and memory up to 10MB. Sony Ericsson will release the F305 with Motion Gaming in selected markets in the third quarter.

For more on the F305 with Motion Gaming:
- read this release

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Sony Ericsson debuts Windows Mobile device

Microsoft: No Zune phone in the cards

Jason Ankeny — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 17:56:59 -0400

Despite soliciting feedback on how its Zune portable media device might more effectively interoperate with devices based on the Windows Mobile OS, Microsoft maintains there are no plans to release a so-called "Zune phone" anytime in the imminent future. In an interview with The San Francisco Chronicle, Microsoft's entertainment and devices division president Robbie Bach says the software giant is not working on a converged Zune/Windows Mobile device: "We continue driving the path we are driving with Windows Mobile and we are very excited about the approach we have taken this year. About 20 million devices will ship with Windows Mobile on it. We will outsell the iPhone. We will outsell the BlackBerry. We don't make phones ourselves. We don't have any plans to make phones ourselves. Our focus is on the belief that a phone is a very personal thing. Different people want different types of phones. We think that is going to continue, and we think Windows Mobile is in a great position to service all those different opportunities."

For more on Microsoft's mobile outlook:
- read this San Francisco Chronicle article

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Funambol launches open-source development forge

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Mobile messaging software provider Funambol announced the launch of the Funambol Forge, a new open-source repository proposed as a collaborative hub for developers. According to Funambol, the forge will enable developers and other community members to work on mobile projects, share technical tips and download software and documentation--positioned as a central access point for all of Funambol's community programs including Code Sniper and Phone Sniper, it will also house the source and binary code for the open source Funambol Community Edition. The forge will also offer both mailing lists and online forums, as well as an online support forum for the myFUNAMBOL portal. Funambol's open-source push email and PIM sync solutions support more than 1.5 billion mobile devices from manufacturers including Apple, Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and LG.

For more on the Funambol Forge:
-read this release

Adobe heads Open Screen Project

Tue, 06 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Adobe Systems is trying to overcome the issues plaguing the fragmented mobile content space by partnering with several key companies to develop a solution for delivering rich web and video content across a variety of devices.

Called the Open Screen Project, Adobe--along with ARM, Chunghwa Telecom, Intel, LG Electronics, Marvell, Motorola, Nokia, NTT DoCoMo, Qualcomm, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Toshiba and others--will enable Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR to be consistent across desktop computers, mobile devices and set-top boxes. The group hopes this will make it easier for developers and content companies to deliver a streamlined user experience.

In an interview with FierceDeveloper, Anup Murarka, director of technical marketing for mobile and devices at Adobe, said that to help jumpstart this initiative Adobe is going to remove all license restrictions on swift file format and FLV/F4V specifications, and remove all license fees on embedded players. "Just as Flash player is free on the desktop, it will be available to all partners and the industry at large," Murarka said. In addition, Adobe will publish all device porting layer APIs for Adobe Flash Player and publish the Adobe Flash Cast protocol and AMF protocol for data services.

The first implementation based on this initiative will likely make its debut in mid-2009. Flash Lite will transition to this new format and will eventually be replaced, Murarka said. -Sue

For more on the Open Screen Project:
-read this release

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Worldwide handset shipments slow in Q1

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

As expected, mobile phone shipments suffered a sequential downturn following the holiday quarter--the latest edition of market intelligence firm IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker reports vendors shipped 291.6 million units during the first quarter of 2008, down 11.6 percent from the 330.8 million units shipped during Q4 of 2007 but up 14.3 percent from the 255 million units shipped during the year-ago quarter. Nokia claimed 39.6 percent market share during Q1 2008 with total shipments of 115.5 million, a volume greater than its three closest competitors combined. According to IDC, volume remained impressive thanks to sales of entry-level devices in emerging markets, while feature phones including the 5310, 5610, and 6500 series and Nseries devices yielded the majority of revenues.

Coming in second: Samsung (46.3 million units shipped, 15.9 percent market share) which IDC notes improved its presence in emerging markets even as European and North American demand softened. While still in third place, Motorola fell even further behind Samsung, capturing just 9.4 percent of market share with 27.4 million units shipped--IDC points its finger at gaps in Moto's product portfolio as well as another quarter of operating loss and lower operating margin. LG Electronics (24.4 million units shipped, 8.4 percent market share) surged into the number four spot for the first time since early 2006 thanks to continued demand for Viewty, Voyager and Venus feature phones. Sony Ericsson slipped to fifth with 22.3 million units shipped and 7.6 percent market share due to diminished demand for its mid-range and high-end devices, channel inventory buildup, component shortages and surging Asia Pacific consumer interest in low-price handsets.

IDC said the first quarter results are in line with its 2008 forecast, but warned economic concerns may negatively impact handset purchases over the remainder of the year. The firm added that continued growth in emerging markets combined with competitive pricing and innovative service plans should help keep the overall market on track.

For more on the IDC Q1 report:
-read this release

QUICKLINKS: Nokia previews iPhone-killer named Tube; News Corp. may join Microsoft in Yahoo bid;

Tue, 15 Apr 2008 06:59:55 -0400

> Nokia previews iPhone-killer named Tube. FierceWireless

> News Corp. may join Microsoft in Yahoo bid. FierceMobileContent

> Report: Phone makers need to target diversity. FierceWireless

> Hands-on with Sony Ericsson's Xperia. FierceWireless

QUICKLINKS: CTIA Wireless 2008 Smartphone Summit; Sony Ericsson launches first U.S. HSDPA phone;

Tue, 01 Apr 2008 07:59:55 -0400

CTIA Wireless 2008 Smartphone Summit. FierceWireless

Sony Ericsson launches first U.S. HSDPA phone. FierceWireless

Videocon to bid for Motorola's handset biz. FierceWireless

Kyocera goes GSM. FierceWireless

Microsoft at work on new mobile web browser?

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

A recent BusinessWeek feature reports Microsoft is redoubling its mobile efforts to compete with the success of rival Apple's iPhone--Microsoft mobile communications business GM Scott Horn denies the software giant's push is in response to Apple's growing traction in the consumer market, saying "We've always been going in this direction, but we feel it's time to move in more aggressively now." Noting Microsoft's recent emphasis on the mobile web browsing experience, heralded by software licensing deals with Adobe Systems, BusinessWeek reports the company is likely in development on a new Windows Mobile-based browser to rival the iPhone, citing Microsoft's recent $500 million acquisition of device maker Danger as further evidence. Horn would say only that "We absolutely intend to provide a great mobile browsing experience."

For more on Microsoft's mobile web efforts:
-read this BusinessWeek article

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