Motorola Inc's mobile phones will use only Windows Mobile and Google's Android as their operating systems next year in China compared to at least six systems now, Rueybin Kao, the firm's China president, said yesterday in Shanghai.
The two systems are designed mainly for smartphones and Motorola, the world's No. 4 mobile phone maker, will continue to expand this segment of the market in China by adding more features in its phones, including music, PDA (personal digital assistant) and mobile Internet functions, according to Kao.
Motorola has reorganized its research team in Nanjing to focus on the Windows Mobile and Android systems. Motorola now works on at least six systems.
Motorola is confident that despite the global financial crisis, the demand for the latest smartphones in China will not abate, Kao said during a conference to promote the firm's luxury cell phone, Aura, which costs more than 14,000 yuan (US$2,058).
Motorola lost market share to Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson in the third quarter, said Gartner Inc, a United States-based IT consulting firm.
Motorola has 8 percent of the global market.
"The economic environment is particularly difficult for Motorola because its lack of compelling products and competitors' aggressive pricing called for price adjustments that it cannot afford," said Carolina Milanesi, research director for mobile devices at Gartner.
(Shanghai Daily December 5, 2008)
