Google is the only winner in the Android ecosystem. June is becoming one of the most important months of the year for the mobile ecosystem with both Apple and Google holding developer events. Hardware is pretty much commoditised meaning that the features which are increasingly going to make the difference for users are being revealed...
Apple is likely to stay away from the black art of cellular radio. News articles and recent hires by Apple suggest that Apple may be moving into developing its own basebands. This could have significant negative implications for Qualcomm for whom Apple makes up a substantial portion of sales. This would imply that Apple wishes...
Life without handsets will be little better than with. John Chen has finally admitted the possibility of failing to turn around Blackberry saying that the company will exit handsets if it can’t turn a profit. This would result in Blackberry becoming just another Mobile Device Management (MDM) vendor like AirWatch, Mobile Iron and Good. This...
iOS 8 is not going to solve the long term services problem. Apple’s hardware and its ecosystem are world leading but both of them are being slowly replicated by competitors. Only apps and services that are exclusive to Apple will allow it to really differentiate in the long term and of these there is little...
Samsung is about growth. HTC is about survival Both Samsung and HTC have reported preliminary results and neither are very encouraging. Samsung Samsung preliminary Q1 14A revenues / EBIT will be KRW51tn-KRW55tn / KRW8.2tn-KRW8.6tn giving mid points of KRW53tn / KRW8.4tn respectively. These midpoints are broadly in line with consensus revenues / EBIT of KRW54tn...
The cable companies and the console makers have the advantage. Not to be outdone by Amazon, Google is also having another stab at TV with the release of another entertainment offering called Android TV. The biggest change that Google has made is that it has given up trying to make a unified user experience across...
Fire TV makes its ecosystem richer not bigger. Amazon has taken the first of two plunges into the consumer ecosystem that I am expecting this year with the launch of Fire TV. I am expecting a handset or handsets to be launched towards the end of the year in time for the Q4 selling season....
Two steps forward. None back. Microsoft made two good steps towards improving the appeal of the Windows ecosystem to both users and developers at its BUILD conference. First. Windows will now be free for all devices which have a screen size of 9 inches or less. With Nokia’s smartphones business soon to be part of...
Only the lawyers are winning. Apple and Samsung are at it again and for the next few weeks the airwaves will be full of sensational claims and counter claims. At the heart of the trial is Apple’s assertion that a number of Samsung devices infringe 5 Apple implementation patents for the following: Data such as...
Richard is founder, owner of research company, Radio Free Mobile. He has 16 years of experience working in sell side equity research. During his 11 year tenure at Nomura Securities, he focused on the equity coverage of the Global Technology sector.
Microsoft – Under the rug
Microsoft continues to hide its light under a bushel. The reviews of Windows Phone 8.1 are starting to come in and they are pretty positive all round. Those that have lived with the new software for several days are finding that the updates have created a significant improvement in the user experience. New features such...