Motorola To Invest US$90 Million in Beijing
Research Center
Motorola, one of the leading mobile phone handset makers
in China, is adding a new research and development center
in China, the world's largest market for mobile phones.
The new facility will be based in Beijing on a 25-acre
company development, and will focus on user interface
and phone design development.
The company is fighting to win back the leading position
in China from Nokia. For a long time, Motorola was the
leading maker of mobile phones, but lost that position
to Nokia, which now has a 15% market share. Motorola has
a 14% market share.
In the past 2-3 years, Chinese handset makers have also
aggressively entered the market, including companies such
as Ningbo Bird and ZTE. ZTE also makes routers and other
Internet communications equipment.
All of the leading companies have at least a portion
of their research and development facilities in Beijing
because China's leading universities, such as Tsinghua
are there, and also because the industry is regulated
by the Ministry of Information Industry.
The Chinese market for mobile handsets is worth US$8
billion, and has 310 million subscribers, making it the
largest single market in the world. The Chinese government
is now planning the rollout of 3G services, which promise
must faster data transfer rates and more services to mobile
phone users. All the main carriers expect that more revenue
will come from data than voice, but no one is sure when
this will happen.
Since users have been slower to adopt new data services
than originally thought, early 3G phones will most likely
offer traditional voice communications, and other services
will only be gradually introduced in subsequent models.
Carriers no longer expect a coomunications revolution,
but an evolution which will be driven by user adoption
rates.
Before you go, did you like this article?
If so, you can receive a free email newsletter version
each weekday. Sign up using the China Business Express
form on this page.
