China Mobile targets 80M 3G users by 2011

China Mobile expects to have as many as 80 million users on its TD-SCDMA 3G network by 2011.That goal is a huge increase on a current official tally (as of end-June) of just 959,000, 0.2 percent of its total subscriber base (493.1 million).

China Mobile's original plan was to have 10-20 million TD-SCDMA users within two years, but due to competition from its rivals China Mobile raised its target to 50-80 million, which would give it one third of the country's total 3G market.

source: GMBB

Sprint acquires Virgin Mobile USA, looks to dominate US prepaid

Sprint said it would buy Virgin Mobile in a deal worth US$483 million, and could complete the transaction by year-end. The move instantly establishes Sprint as a major player in the US prepaid market.

source: WirelessIntelligence

Microsoft to bring Office to Nokia phones

According to a Cnet News report, Microsoft is attempting to reposition the next version of Office ('Office 2010') as available on many more platforms other than the desktop PC environment, where it is a clear market-leader. In mobile, the US software giant has already demonstrated native versions of Office running on its Windows Mobile platform, but the deal with Nokia - the world's largest handset vendor - will significantly expand the number of Office-compatible mobile devices.

source: GMBB

Gartner: Global smartphone sales hit 40M in 2Q09

Table 1: Worldwide Mobile Terminal Sales to End Users in 2Q09 (Thousands of Units)

Company	2Q09 Sales	2Q09 Market Share (%)	2Q08 Sales	2Q08 Market Share (%)
Nokia	105,413.3	36.8	120,353.3	39.5
Samsung	55,430.2	19.3	46,376.0	15.2
LG	30,497.0	10.7	26,698.9	8.8
Motorola	15,947.8	5.6	30,371.8	10.0
Sony Ericsson	13,574.2	4.7	22,951.7	7.5
Others	65,260.2	23.0	57,970.6	19.0
Total	286,122.7	100	304,722.3	100

Table 2: Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users in 2Q09 (Thousands of Units)

Company

Company	2Q09 Sales	2Q09 Market Share (%)	2Q08 Sales	2Q08 Market Share (%)
Nokia	18,441.0	45.0	15,297.9	47.4
Research In Motion	7,678.9	18.7	5,594.2	17.3
Apple	5,434.7	13.3	892.5	2.8
HTC	2,471.0	6.0	1,330.8	4.1
Fujitsu	1,249.0	3.0	1,071.5	3.3
Others	5,688.2	13.9	8,085.8	25.1
Total	40,962.8	100.0	32,272.7	100.0

source: Gartner

Millicom sells Cambodian assets to Royal Group

Millicom has sold its Cambodian operations to its local partner the Royal Group for $346 million in cash.

source: telecomasia.net

Korean's WiMAX licenses might be revoked!

In 2005, KT Corp. , Hanaro Telecom Inc. , and SK Telecom received licenses for WiBro (Korea's name for mobile WiMax), although Hanaro returned its license in the same year. According to the terms of those licenses, the companies agreed to invest $1 billion on infrastructure, and the government set a target of 1.4 million subscribers by 2009.

Investment:
To date, KT and SKT still have $200 million to $300 million in capex left to invest in the technology, according to Tae-Hyung Kim, Asia/Pacific analyst at Pyramid Research. It is this shortfall, combined with the slow rollout and takeup of services, that has overstretched the government's patience.

Market take-up:
As of the end of June, KT had 218,454 WiBro subscribers, according to the company's figures. SKT does not publish its WiBro subscriber numbers separately, but Kim believes the number stood at just 20,000 in April this year, although the company has a target of 100,000 by the end of the year. As of the end of June, Korea had just shy of 22 million HSPA subscribers, according to Wireless Intelligence , that's 47 percent of the total mobile subscriber base.

Network coverage:
A key factor in the difference in takeup is coverage. WiBro coverage is limited to Seoul and its surrounding areas, whereas HSPA is nationwide and Pyramid's Kim explains that even if the operators complete their promised investments, nationwide coverage is out of the question.

source: unstrung