Chinese telecommunications colossus ZTE has attributed its first-half net profit success to its investment in 4G infrastructure and handsets. The world’s fourth-largest vendor of smartphones has hit its projected first-half net profit target forecast of 30%.
Telstra, Australia’s largest telecommunications company, saw its shares dive to a five-year low on August 17 after announcing it will reduce its dividend this financial year. The operator reported a 1 percent lift in its full year profits amidst tough competition, but attention quickly centered on the announced cut to its dividend from next year.
Chinese mobile and fixed-line operator China Telecom posted positive interim results for 2017, with net profit increasing 7.4 percent to 12.54 billion yuan ($1.88 billion), compared with a net profit of 11.67 billion the previous year. But the company said it won’t pay an interim dividend this year to allow for funding flexibility.
Spark, New Zealand’s leading telecom operator, reported an overall net earnings increase of 13 percent to $418 million, Spark Chairman Mark Verbiest announced on August 18. The results for the year ended 30 June 2017 were in line with expectations and mark further progress in Spark’s long-term digital transformation.
Japanese conglomerate Toshiba is set to end its long-running feud with Western Digital – following its confirmation that it is set to enter talks with the US firm over the sale of its prized memory chip business. It has been reported that discussions between both entities had only reopened because negotiations with Toshiba’s preferred bidder had stalled.
Ericsson sued smartphone maker Wiko, in the regional courts of Düsseldorf and Mannheim in Germany, for infringement of patents essential for 2G, 3G and 4G cellular technology, as well as implementation patents. Wiko is a French smartphone manufacturing company majority-owned by Chinese technology group Tinno Mobile and its phones are manufactured in China.
Wiko has been infringing Ericsson’s intellectual property rights for six years without any license or compensation, Ericsson claims. The Swedish telecom vendor has “tried to establish a fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) license agreement with Wiko since May 2013, but has not succeeded,” it said. Ericsson has now decided to exercise its legal rights to enforce its patents against Wiko’s infringing products.
“Global sharing of technology and open standards are the force behind the smartphone revolution and have allowed new entrants, such as Wiko, to quickly build successful businesses,” said Gustav Brismark, Chief Intellectual Property Officer at Ericsson.
“This ICT eco-system only works, however, if all market players respect the basic rules of FRAND licensing,” he added. “It is unfair for Wiko to benefit from our substantial R&D investment without paying a reasonable license fee for our patented technology. Our ambition has always been to reach a mutually fair and reasonable license agreement with Wiko, just as we do with all of our licensees.”
Ericsson has a large intellectual property portfolio, which includes more than 42,000 granted patents worldwide. Ericsson’s patent portfolio covers 2G, 3G and 4G/LTE technologies, and the company plays a key role in the global organizations that are developing standards for 5G technologies.
China, according to state media, has launched a digital “cyber-court” in an effort to deal with rising internet-related crimes. The first case – a copyright dispute between an online writer and a web company – was heard on August 18, at the new Hangzhou Internet Court.
Funds generated from a share sale conducted by China Unicom is estimated to earn the operator around $11.7 billion, which it will subsequently utilize to upgrade its 4G capabilities and help accelerate its aims to develop 5G related technology.
Chinese telecommunications conglomerate ZTE has increased its market share in the US smartphone industry. Analysts have suggested that its success is down to a combination of aggressive marketing and its manufacturing of cheap and affordable devices.
Huawei retook the number two spot from Apple in Central and Eastern Europe in Q2 2017, according to Canalys research. It shipped 1.8 million smartphones to take a 12 percent market share, beating Apple by fewer than 50,000 units. Its strength was in low-to-mid-range products, with the P10 Lite becoming its best-seller in the region.
