A new Japanese law aims to foster competition in the smartphone app market by allowing third-party app stores and billing providers to operate on Apple iOS and Google Android platforms. This legislation, known as the Act on Promotion of Competition for Specified Smartphone Software, was announced by Japan’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC).
Samsung played a pivotal role in the German smartphone market’s recovery during the first quarter of 2024, ending a prolonged period of decline. According to Counterpoint Research’s Q1 2024 Market Monitor Shipment Tracker, smartphone shipments in Germany increased by 13% year-over-year.
Telecom operators are increasingly embracing eSIM technology, which is expected to be featured in over half of all smartphones sold globally within the next five years, according to new research from CCS Insight. The analyst firm projects that by 2028, 56% of smartphones will support embedded SIMs, a significant rise from 27% last year.
After more than two years of declines, the European smartphone market has started to show signs of recovery, with a 10% year-on-year increase in shipments during the first quarter of 2024, according to Counterpoint Research. However, analysts are cautious about predicting a significant long-term upswing.
SIPPIO, the global leader in voice enablement, and Clerk Chat, the leading conversational messaging platform, have today announced the launch of ‘SIPPIO Text Messaging by Clerk Chat’. Available immediately, the new service seamlessly integrates SMS/MMS and WhatsApp Business directly into Microsoft Teams, with Apple Messages for Business coming soon.
The UK’s telecommunications regulator, Ofcom, is advancing plans to facilitate shared access to the highly sought-after upper 6 GHz band, proposing two primary frameworks to balance the needs of both mobile and Wi-Fi providers. The first proposed approach, known as variable spectrum split, would allow both mobile and Wi-Fi services to use portions of the spectrum not occupied by the other.
Three UK revealed its quarterly financial performance this week, showcasing an increase in revenue and margin while reiterating its intent for a potential merger with competitor Vodafone.
The telecommunications company disclosed a notable 9% surge in both revenue, climbing to £664 million, and margin, reaching £424 million. This growth was attributed in part to a rise in its customer base, with active customers increasing by 3% overall and active contract customers by 6%.
In a bid to fortify its position in the Australian regional mobile market, TPG Telecom has inked a monumental 11-year network sharing deal with Optus. Valued at a hefty A$1.59 billion ($1.04 billion), the agreement is set to significantly expand TPG’s geographic coverage, doubling it to 1 million square kilometers and enabling access to 98.4% of the population.
The Snapdragon X Plus is an upgraded version of the Snapdragon X Elite, which debuted in October last year. Many of the touted features remain similar, including claims of exceptional performance, extended battery life, and cutting-edge on-device AI capabilities. Qualcomm asserts that the CPU, GPU, and NPU (Neural Processing Unit) collectively offer superior performance and energy efficiency.
The smartphone industry is gearing up for a seismic shift as generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) capabilities become mainstream. According to the latest forecast from Counterpoint Research, the global shipment of GenAI-capable smartphones is expected to grow at an impressive compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 65% between 2024 and 2027.
