Despite new entries, handheld sales dropped 40% from a year ago
Mobile device sales plunged 40% in the second quarter for Motorola Inc., which yesterday blamed the downturn for an earnings loss of 2 cents per share.

Total sales in the second quarter were $8.7 billion, down from $10.8 billion in the second quarter a year ago. Of that total, mobile device sales were $4.3 billion, down by 40% over the second quarter a year ago, the Schaumburg, Ill.-based company reported.

“This was a challenging quarter for Motorola in which revenue fell short of our expectations due to a decline in mobile device unit shipments,” CEO Ed Zander said in a statement. Chief Financial Officer Tom Meredith said the device maker’s efforts are focused on improving cash flow and profitability. He predicted that head-count reductions and other cost controls in 2008 will save the company $1 billion.

Motorola estimates it has about 13.5% of the global handset market. The company noted that it had continued success with the popular Razr and shipped the 100 millionth unit of the handset during the quarter. However, many analysts have been eager to see Motorola move beyond the Razr and its second-generation model. The company announced the Q9, the Moto Z8 and the Rokr Z6, as well as the Linux/Java GSM Razr2 and EV-DO Razr2.

The company’s Enterprise Mobility Solutions division, which focuses on government and businesses, had sales of $1.9 billion, up 42% from the second quarter a year ago.
via[computerworld.com]