Mobile phone industry braced for decline

Andrew Parker reports from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on how the telecoms industry is placed to cope with the global economic downturn
The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona combines the world’s largest exhibition for the mobile industry with a cutting edge congress featuring the most prominent chief executives representing mobile operators, vendors and content owners from across the world
Ericsson and Altcatel-Lucent emerge as big winners at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, when Verizon Wireless, the leading US mobile operator, awarded them multi-billion dollar contracts for fourth-generation wireless infrastructure
Nokia, the leading mobile phone maker, and Qualcomm, the US mobile phone chipmaker, signed a deal to develop a new range of advanced 3G handsets to launch next year in the North American market
Telefónica and Vodafone say their industry could fuel economic recovery, but warn that efforts are hampered by government controls, notably from Brussels
Even an untidy scrawl can be read back accurately, thanks to an innovative electronic pen device called the LiveScribe Pulse

Andrew Parker reports from the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona on how the telecoms industry is placed to cope with the global economic downturn

The head of AT&T’s mobile phone unit believes investment in mobile broadband can help revive the economy
Carl-Henric Svanberg reveals how the firm successfully bid for 3G rollouts in China

Microsoft’s chairman and chief executive insists that the company is not playing catch-up and will focus on low and high-cost smart-phones

Nokia’s chief executive is confident that the company has the right strategy to improve the the bottom line
The latest handsets and devices unveiled at the Mobile World Congress
Steve Ballmer, Microsoft chief executive, insists that the company is not playing catch-up and will focus on both low and high-cost smartphones after launching a new version of its Windows Mobile phone operating system
The head of a Taiwanese company that makes Google’s first phone says there is room for improvement in phones’ ability to provide more efficient user experiences through better software
Marketing chichi products begins with the few and ends with queues round the block – as the craze for clever handsets demonstrates
Europe’s leading mobile phone operators are putting plans for new 4G networks on hold in an attempt to reassure investors about their capital expenditure plans
The software company is to open its own mobile applications store and will launch ‘touch’ features as it steps up its battle against rival Apple
The internet search behemoth is looking to create mobile applications that will become as ingrained on mobiles as desktop search is for PC users
Ofcom, the telecoms industry regulator, has proposed auctioning valuable bandwidth owned by Vodafone and O2 as part of the government’s plan for all homes to have broadband internet access by 2012
The world's leading mobile phone makers are braced for a painful 2009 after warnings that sales of handsets could fall sharply for the first time in eight years. Sales...
Leading telecoms equipment makers are bracing themselves for a painful 2009, with Canada’s Nortel looking the most vulnerable to spending cuts