AllThingsD » Movistar

Analyst: Palm Is Not Toast

John Paczkowski — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:00:56 +0000

Investors poised to write off Palm as a legitimate contender in the smartphone market may want to hold off in light of some recent developments that suggest 2010 may be a strong year for the company. With a Verizon (VZ) relationship clearly in the works, some 500 webOS applications available and a high-end and low-end device on which to run them, the highly competitive smartphone sector may well be developing an…appreciation for Palm (PALM).

In a note to clients today, MKM Partners analyst Tero Kuittinen says Palm’s industry position is improving, and quickly too. “We believe that many of the risks we saw to [Palm] have subsided,” Kuittinen writes.

Listing three reasons for optimism, Kuittinen continues. “First,we are much more confident about Palm’s chances to sell through Verizon and believe a Verizon relationship would mitigate the uncertainty of an AT&T relationship.

“Second,” the analyst continues, “Europe is shaping up better than we had anticipated, as Android is failing to get sufficient traction, and the Palm Pre is outselling key HTC and Motorola models in major markets like the U.K.”

Concluding, he adds, “Third, Amazon and Wal-Mart are strongly supporting the Pre and Pixi, vindicating Palm’s strategy of targeting the mass market, rather than tech enthusiasts.”

Interesting points, all of them, particularly the one about European sales. Kuittinen says Pre shipments in Europe have been quite a bit stronger than once thought: “Distributor data from the past two months suggest that Palm could be selling 10,000-15,000 units per month in the U.K. We believe sales are doing reasonably well in Germany through Q2, and strong operator marketing support by Movistar in Spain bodes well for Palm, in our view. In total, we believe Palm could be selling 30,000 units or more per month in Europe.”

Kuittinen expects Palm to beat November expectations when it reports earnings Thursday.

Gmail Exits Beta

John Paczkowski — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 18:00:54 +0000

[ See post to watch video ]

Palm Pre in Europe by Christmas

John Paczkowski — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:00:08 +0000

Now that sales of the Pre in the states have tapered off to a point where supply and demand are roughly in parity, Palm is gearing up to bring the handset to Europe. In a statement issued this morning, the company said Telefónica’s O2 subsidiary will carry the Pre in the U.K., Germany and Ireland, while its Movistar brand will offer it in Spain. The Pre will arrive at market in those countries in time for the winter holidays. That likely means October, which will give Telefonica enough time to maximize orders in the run-up to Christmas. Telefónica declined to give a price or to say how long its exclusive deal with Palm will last.

For Telefonica, which, through O2 and Movistar, is already the exclusive carrier of Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone in the U.K. and Spain, the deal is another coup. As Mathew Key, chairman of Telefónica Europe, noted in a gloating press release, “Telefónica is fast becoming the home of the smartphone.”

And for Palm (PALM), well, it’s another big step on the road to recovery. As CEO Jon Rubinstein said earlier this year, “We’ve been fighting the battle with basically both hands tied behind our back for the past year and half. Now we’re getting on the playing field, and we’re going to be extremely competitive. But it’s the beginning.”

Palm Pre con Movistar en España?

John Paczkowski — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 07:00:33 +0000

Palm says it hasn’t yet announced a Pre distribution deal with Telefónica.

No matter–it appears as though the Spanish media have taken the liberty of doing it for the company. According to a number of Spanish news outlets, the carrier has negotiated an exclusive deal with Palm (PALM) to distribute the new handset in Spain and Latin America, and perhaps in England as well. If these reports prove true, the Pre will be sold by Telefónica’s subsidiary brands, Movistar (Spain and Latin America) and O2 (England). Quite a coup for the carrier, which presumably beat out rival Vodafone (VOD) for the privilege.

Softbank iPhone Deal Announced With 1-Button Press Release

John Paczkowski — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:10:43 +0000

With less than a week to go before Apple CEO Steve Jobs’s June 9 Worldwide Developers Conference keynote address and the expected debut of the 3G iPhone–and perhaps the Apple App Store and Mac OS X 10.6 as well–the company has finally closed a deal that will bring the device to Japan, one of the world’s largest and most demanding mobile-phone markets.

Softbank (SFTBF), Japan’s No. 3 wireless provider, broke the news in a spartan press release that would do even Apple (AAPL), a company renowned for its minimalist gadgets, proud. If ever there was a one-button press release, this is it:

SOFTBANK MOBILE Corp. today announced it has signed an agreement with Apple® to bring the iPhone™ to Japan later this year.”

Well, there you go. Presumably, Jobs will fill us in on the details on Monday. In any event, lining up a wireless partner in Japan is an important step for Apple, which hopes to gain a 1% share of the global cellphone business by the end of 2008. Nomura Research Institute estimates that Apple can sell 2 million to 3 million iPhones annually in Japan–-about 5% of the market–if it plays its cards right.

Also announced this morning, a deal with Telefonica (TEM), which has agreed to distribute the iPhone in Spain through its Movistar subsidiary. Together the two deals bring the iPhone distributor count up to an even 70, with more countries presumably waiting in the wings.

(Image credit: AAPLinvestors)