Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Cell Phones Overloaded

Living in an age of flourishing technology, we see new technological products come out every day. Many companies have introduced satellite digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) cell phones in Korea. These cell phones have many functions, including digital cameras, multimedia services, DMB and others.

People can take photos, download music and even watch TV while moving. But some people complain that the products that come out these days are too big and complicated and have dull designs.

Now we are experiencing the "overshooting" of mobile companies, where users no longer wish for additional functions and more innovation only leads to numbing complexity.

Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics have been pushed down by the power of Nokia and Motorola. In the first quarter this year, Motorola's market share jumped to 20 percent. Also, Sony Ericsson, fifth-largest in terms of market share by number of phones, doubled its net income, threatening the "Big 4."

According to Strategy Analytics, a market research institute, Nokia kept its first place standing with a market share of 32.8 percent in the first quarter of 2006. Thirty-two point eight percent amounts to 75.1 million phones. Motorola with 20.10 percent of market share has 46.1 million phones while Samsung Electronics, Korea's No. 1 global company, has a market share of 12.7 percent or 29 million phones. LG Electronics, Korea's second largest company, has a market share of 6.80 percent with 15.6 million phones while Sony Ericsson has a market share of 5.80 percent with 13.3 million phones.

Motorola's high market share is due to an innovative product, the new "global icon." The new product is the best example of a cell phone that has conquered the global market with style and design rather than function and content.

They approached the market with a design mind rather than trying to sell ever better and ever more profitable. It includes the functions that customers want and use.

To keep its high place in the mobile industry, Korean companies need to keep developing technology. But isn't meeting customers' needs important, too?

Lee Sea-rhin is a junior majoring in business administration at Yonsei University in Seoul.

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