Andy Sjostrom
08-22-2003, 10:54 AM
<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.cbronline.com/cbrnews/59cb42f0422597ad80256d8a0018cb0b' target='_blank'>http://www.cbronline.com/cbrnews/59cb42f0422597ad80256d8a0018cb0b</a><br /><br /></div>Computer Business Review just published an interesting article by Tony Cripps called <a href="http://www.cbronline.com/cbrnews/59cb42f0422597ad80256d8a0018cb0b">"Symbian Lays Down Gauntlet to Mobile Rivals"</a>. The article is full of Symbian optimism and confidence. Target: a million devices sold. A week.<br /><br />"... The revelations show Symbian's growing confidence and send a warning signal to Microsoft Corp, which has so far failed to successfully take the smart phone fight to its London, UK-based rival. ... The growth in Symbian handset shipments has been in parallel with a consummate decrease in the price of a Symbian OS license. From an average royalty per unit of $13.50 during the second quarter of 2002, Symbian has now set a base figure of $7.25 per unit for the first two million devices shipped by a licensee, dropping to $5 thereafter. "When [CEO] David Levin started he was looking at one billion units a year. the first target we reached was a million in a year, the next is target is a million a month and once we reach a million a week it starts to get interesting," said Bancroft. ... Symbian's disclosure would appear to lay down the gauntlet to Microsoft. While it is unclear what Microsoft charges for its own comparable mobile operating systems, Windows Mobile 2003 for Pocket PCs and Windows Powered Smartphone 2002, the company appears ready to sacrifice its OS license revenues in the interest of mass market deployment. In May, the company launched a stripped-down version of its core embedded platform, known as Windows CE .NET 4.2 Core, at a bargain price of around $3. This was considerably lower than the price of the equivalent CE .NET Professional license, which sells for about $15."