The Harsh Reality Is That Subscribers Are Replacing Their Handsets Less Frequently

By Carsten Brinkschulte, CEO of Synchronica

The latest data from market analysts, such as Strategy Analytics, shows handset sales declining sharply. And a recent report from Portio Research showed that smartphone shipments were at 12.5 percent last year and will not reach 25 percent of the total annual handset shipments until 2013.

The harsh reality is that subscribers are replacing their handsets less frequently than before the recession took hold, and when they do replace their handsets they are opting for mid-range or even lower-end devices.

So aren't operators missing a trick? In my view, they should be clawing back some of this lost revenue from smartphone shipments by offering value-added services (VAS) that work on legacy handsets and not just on the latest and greatest smartphones.

The smartphone revolution is not going to happen any time soon, and, in any case, the lines are blurring between smartphones and feature phones. Why opt for a more expensive smartphone when today's feature phones have built-in functionality just waiting to be used?

Operators that offer addictive services, such as our mobile email solution that works on any handset, to the non-smartphone user, are the ones that will thrive in today's tough climate.

More information about the global handset market

About Synchronica

Synchronica plc develops and markets mobile email and synchronization solutions for mobile operators and device manufacturers. Products include the award-winning push email and synchronization solution Mobile Gateway and the device backup solution Mobile Backup. Based on industry standards, Synchronica can reach the built-in email and synchronization clients of more than two billion mobile devices on the market today. Service providers in emerging and developed markets use Synchronica's products to offer mobile email, PIM synchronization, and backup and restore services to consumer and business subscribers.

Headquartered in England, Synchronica has a development center in Germany and presences in the USA, Hong Kong, and Dubai. Synchronica plc is a public company traded on the AIM list of the London Stock Exchange (SYNC.LN). More information is available at www.synchronica.com

For more information, please contact:

Nicole Meissner
Chief Operating Officer
Tel.: +44 1892 552 780
Mobile: +44 7977 256 412
Fax: +44 1892 552 721
nicole.meissner@synchronica.com