LG to grow market share with cheaper phones

SEOUL - LG Electronics Inc, the world's No.3 mobile phone maker, aims to increase its global market share to at least 10 percent this year and boost low-cost phone sales, the head of its handset business said.

As shrinking consumer demand hits the mobile industry, LG expects deteriorating profits this year, but still targets a high single-digit percent profit margin on mobiles, against 11 percent in 2008, said Skott Ahn, President and CEO of Mobile Communications at LG.

"Developed markets will definitely suffer some contraction, but there's a chance for growth in first-time buyers in emerging markets," Ahn said.

He said LG was aiming to sell more than 100 million handsets this year. It sold 100.7 million mobiles in 2008, beating Motorola Inc by a slight margin to rank behind Nokia and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, and claim about 8.5 percent of the global market.

"We will be able to meet our market share goal (of 10 percent) if we can maintain our sales volume at last year's level," Ahn said, adding the targets assumed the global mobile phone market would decline about 10 percent in 2009.

The comments were made at a news conference in Seoul ahead of the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.

Samsung, which is also attending the mobile fair, reiterated at a press briefing that it aimed to sell more than 200 million handsets this year, pushing up its global market share to at least 20 percent from about 16 percent in 2008.

Samsung also hopes to post a double-digit percent operating profit margin at its telecom business, spokesman Ahn Jae-kwang said. The company posted a 9 percent profit margin in 2008.

Strategy Analytics forecast the global cellphone market to shrink by 9 percent in 2009, its first decline since 2001. The outlook is especially grim for the first half as shipments slow after year-end holidays in developed markets.

"A decline in profit margins looks inevitable, although smartphone sales can make up for some of the revenue shortfalls caused by selling more cheap phones," said Kim Ik-sang, analyst at HI Investment & Securities in Seoul.

Kim expects Samsung and LG to post 6-7 percent profit margins on their mobile phone businesses this year. "In the downturn, the best they can do is minimize handset price falls and cement their market share."

LG will also have to focus more on low-end phones, priced at $100 and below, to grow in the shrinking overall market. Ahn said the South Korean firm planned to boost sales of low-cost phones by around a fifth this year.

In 2008, high-end phones, sold at $200 or higher, represented about 80 percent of LG's handset revenue.

However, LG will stay away from the very low-end category of $20 or lower handsets, and offer affordable mass-market models that still provide the feel of premium phones, Ahn added.

"We are still in the stage of building up our brand in emerging markets," he said. "And we still want to avoid price competition."

LG is also boosting its smartphone lineup to strengthen its presence in the promising market segment, currently led by Apple Inc's iPhone and the Blackberry from Research In Motion. LG plans to roll out about 10 new smartphone models this year, up from three unveiled in 2008, Ahn said.

Smartphones are mobiles with PC-like functionality, which run an operating system and can adopt various applications on top of advanced features such as wireless Internet.

In the long term, LG wants to become No.2 in the global mobile market in 3-4 years, Ahn said, adding: "I doubt whether No.3 would still be there 3-4 years later."

Ahn said the current downturn and emerging players such as Apple were changing the landscape of the industry, and a few struggling players could disappear.

Slumping demand has begun to bite mobile makers in the last quarter, with Sony Ericsson and Motorola posting operating losses on phones and three of the top five players reporting lower shipments.

Only Samsung and LG sold more phones and gained market share in October-December, but their margins suffered as a result.

By 0214 GMT, LG shares were down 0.5 percent, compared with a 0.2 percent gain in the Seoul stock market. Samsung was up 0.8 percent.

Amazon Launched Kindle 2 Features

Kindle Features
Advanced Design

Sleek & Trim

At 10.2 ounces, Kindle is lighter than a typical paperback and as thin as most magazines. Barely a third of an inch in profile, you’ll find Kindle fits perfectly in your hands.

Improved Ergonomics

Kindle is as easy to hold and use as a book. We designed it with long-form reading in mind. When reading for long periods of time, people naturally shift positions and often like to read with one hand. Kindle’s page-turning buttons are located on both sides, allowing you to read and turn pages comfortably with one hand from any position. The page-turn buttons now flex inward to prevent any accidental page turns when picking up or handling Kindle.

New 5-way controller

Kindle has a new easy-to-use 5-way controller, enabling precise on-screen navigation for selecting text to highlight or looking up words.

Simple to Use, No Computer Required

Kindle is completely wireless and ready to use right out of the box–no setup, no cables, no computer required.
Even Longer Battery Life

25% Longer Battery Life - Read for Days Without Recharging

With Kindle’s 25% longer battery life, you can read on a single charge for up to 4 days with wireless on. Turn wireless off and read for up to 2 weeks. Battery life will vary based on wireless usage, such as shopping the Kindle Store and downloading content. In low coverage areas or in 1xRTT only coverage, wireless usage will consume battery power more quickly.

Charge via USB

Kindle supports wall charging via the included Kindle power adapter, and charging from your computer via the included USB 2.0 cable. Kindle fully charges in approximately 4 hours.
Wireless Access with Whispernet

Fast 3G Network - Get Books in Under 60 Seconds

Whispernet utilizes Amazon’s optimized technology plus Sprint’s national high-speed (3G) data network to enable you to wirelessly search, discover, and download content on the go. Your books and periodicals are delivered via Whispernet in less than 60 seconds. And unlike WiFi, you never have to hunt for a hotspot.

Expanded National Coverage

We expanded Kindle’s national coverage to include more cities and areas in all 50 states, enabling wireless downloads of books, newspapers, magazines, and blogs. Check our wireless coverage map for availability.

No Wireless Bills

No monthly wireless bills, data plans, or commitments. Amazon pays for Kindle’s wireless connectivity so you won’t see a wireless bill. There is no wireless setup–you are ready to shop, purchase and read right out of the box. See Wireless Terms and Conditions.
Carry Your Library in 10.2 Ounces

Holds Over 1,500 Books

The ultimate travel companion, Kindle weighs 10.2 ounces and holds more than 1,500 books. No longer pick and choose which books fit in your carry-on. Now you can always have your entire library with you.

Automatic Library Backup: Download Your Books Anytime for Free

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Enhanced Reading

Lose Yourself in Your Reading

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Paper-like Screen

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Sharper Display of Images and Photos

Kindle’s high-resolution screen now boasts 16 shades of gray, so images and photos are sharper and clearer than ever.

Read in Sunlight with No Glare

Kindle’s screen reflects light like ordinary paper and uses no backlighting, eliminating the glare associated with other electronic displays. As a result, Kindle can be read as easily in bright sunlight as in your living room.

Adjustable Text Size

Because one size doesn’t fit all, you can increase the text size of your favorite book or periodical with the push of a button. If your eyes tire, simply increase the font size and continue reading comfortably. Kindle has six adjustable font sizes to suit your reading preference. Now every book in your library can be large print.

Read-to-Me Feature

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Improved Newspaper Experience

Using Kindle’s new 5-way controller, you can quickly flip between articles, making it faster and easier to browse and read the morning paper. Want to remember the newspaper or magazine article you just read? Clip and save entire articles for later reading with a single click.

Faster Page Turns

Pages now turn 20% faster on average.

Bookmarks and Annotations

By using the QWERTY keyboard, you can add annotations to text, just like you might write in the margins of a book. And because it is digital, you can edit, delete, and export your notes. Using the new 5-way controller, you can highlight and clip key passages and bookmark pages for future use. You’ll never need to bookmark your last place in the book, because Kindle remembers for you and always opens to the last page you read.

Full Image Zoom

Images and photos display crisply on Kindle and can be zoomed to the full size of the screen.

Personal Documents

Kindle makes it easy to take your personal documents with you, eliminating the need to print. Each Kindle has a unique and customizable e-mail address. You can set your unique email address on your Manage Your Kindle page. This allows you and your approved contacts to e-mail Word, PDF documents, and pictures wirelessly to your Kindle for a small per document fee–currently only 10¢ per document. Kindle supports wireless delivery of unprotected Microsoft Word, PDF, HTML, TXT, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, PRC and MOBI files.

You can email your PDFs wirelessly to your Kindle. Due to PDF’s fixed layout format, some complex PDF files may not format correctly on your Kindle.

If you are not in a wireless area or would like to avoid the fee, you can send attachments to “name”@free.kindle.com to be converted and e-mailed to your computer at the e-mail address associated with your Amazon.com account login. You can then transfer the document to your Kindle using your USB connection. For example, if your Kindle email address is Jay@Kindle.com, send your attachments to Jay@free.kindle.com.

Built-in Dictionary with Instant Lookup

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Wireless Access to Wikipedia

Kindle also includes free built-in access to the world’s most exhaustive and up-to-date encyclopedia–Wikipedia.org. With Kindle in hand, looking up people, places, events, and more has never been easier. It gives whole new meaning to the phrase walking encyclopedia.

Search

Kindle makes it easy to search within a book, across your library, in the Kindle Store, or even the Web. To use the Search feature, simply type in a word or phrase you’re looking for, and Kindle finds every instance in your book or across your Kindle library. Looking for the first reference of a character in your book? Simply type in the name and search. You can extend your search to the Kindle Store to find related titles you may be interested in. Explore even further by searching Wikipedia and the Web.

Audiobooks

With Kindle, you are able to download and enjoy more than 50,000 audio titles from Audible.com, including bestselling audio books, radio programs, audio newspapers, and magazines. Due to their file size, audiobooks are downloaded to your PC over your existing Internet connection and then transferred to Kindle using the included USB 2.0 cable. Listen via Kindle’s speaker or plug in your headphones for private listening.

Whispersync

Have more than one Kindle? Our new Whispersync technology allows you to seamlessly switch back and forth between your Kindle devices while keeping your reading location synchronized–simply pick up reading right where you left off.
Experimental Features

The experimental category represents features we are still working on to enhance the Kindle experience even further. Try them out and let us know what you think.

Read-to-Me

Now Kindle can read to you. With its new Text-to-Speech feature, Kindle can read every book, blog, magazine, and newspaper out loud to you. You can switch back and forth between reading and listening, and your spot is automatically saved. Pages automatically turn while the content is being read, so you can listen hands-free. You can speed up or slow down the reading speeds or choose a male or female voice. Anything you can read on Kindle, Kindle can read to you, including books, newspapers, magazines, blogs and even personal documents. In the middle of a great book or article but have to jump in the car? Simply turn on Text-to-Speech and listen on the go.

Basic Web Browser

Kindle’s Basic Web browser works well to read simple, text-centric Web sites such as Google and Wikipedia. Need to find a movie listing or look up a sports score? Now it’s easier than ever to find the information you’re looking for right from your Kindle.

PDF Document Conversion

You can email your PDF documents wirelessly to your Kindle, just like other personal documents. Due to PDF’s fixed layout format, some complex PDF files may not format correctly on your Kindle.

Listen to Music & Podcasts

Transfer MP3 files to Kindle to play as background music while you read. You can quickly and easily transfer MP3 files via USB by connecting Kindle to your computer.
Included in The Box

Kindle electronic reader, power adapter, and USB 2.0 cable (for connection to the Kindle power adapter or optionally to connect to a PC or Macintosh computer).