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Press Release
Simultaneous sourcing into China, Korea and Vietnam markets, realizing economy of scale effect.
6 models released in first half of 2007, sourcing of 300,000~500,000 units per model, ongoing expansion planned.
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Efforts for development of CDMA business in China are being intensified as SK Telecom initiates joint sourcing of handsets with China Unicom.
SK Telecom and China Unicom (CEO Chang Xiaobing, www.chinaunicom.com) revealed on the 26th that Korea and China had decided on "joint handset sourcing" in order to target the two markets of Korea and China.
This is the first time that any conspicuous achievements have been announced since the strategic alliance between SK Telecom and China Unicom.
On June 21, SK Telecom established a contract for purchase of CBs worth USD 1 billion issued by China Unicom Limited, a company listed in Hong Kong. Also, through the establishment of a "Strategic Alliance for CDMA Services" with China Unicom, SK Telecom has announced alliance and cooperation in joint handset sourcing, joint development of additional services, joint platform development, marketing / distribution, CRM, and network.
As a result, for specific implementation of the 6 areas of strategic alliance between SK Telecom and China Unicom, a consultation group and task force consisting of 50 working level members from both companies are in operation, with discussions on specific ways of cooperation through mutual provision of consulting in each area, sharing of expertise, provision of market information, etc.
On September 11, a workshop was held in Busan for two days on the 6 areas of strategic partnership with participation by the CEOs of the two companies, with an agreement to make it a priority to pursue joint handset sourcing.
Through such an agreement, SK Telecom and China Unicom has agreed to source joint handsets of 6 types in the first half of 2007 for the Korea and China markets, and plan to continue expanding the supply of model types and volume by 2008.
The 6 types of joint sourcing handset models released in the first half of 2007 are subject to discussion among the 3 handset manufacturers, Samsung, LG, and Motorola, mostly targeting the mid-to-high-end market in China, with differentiated handsets based on CDMA20001x network with applications such as high quality LCD, 2 Mega Camera, and Bluetooth.
Going forward, in order to target the high-end and low-end markets of both countries, other than the 3 handset companies, diverse handset line-ups are planned for deployment upon discussion between Korean, Chinese and foreign handset makers. Through cooperation between the two companies, joint supply of mid-to-low priced models aimed at the China and Vietnam markets are also planned.
Through the joint sourcing of handsets, SK Telecom expects the acquisition of "handset price competitiveness through an economy of scale", along with the differentiated wireless Internet and VAS of CDMA services that target the 20 million SK Telecom subscribers and 35 million China Unicom subscribers. Moreover, it is expected that this will contribute to the expansion of CDMA services within China.
SK Telecom’s CEO Shin-Bae Kim remarked, "It is quite significant that since the strategic alliance with China Unicom, we have been able to overcome various difficulties, such as the difference in the telecommunications environment of the two countries, to acquire handset competitiveness, which is the most important. As our first achievement comes based on the devoted work of the two companies, we hope that the joint sourcing of handsets will lead to a dramatic development of China Unicom’s CDMA business and a turning point for China’s CDMA business.
China Unicom’s CEO Chang Xiaobing remarked, "The joint sourcing of handsets will be an important basis for development of CDMA operations, and we will provide full support so that the diverse strategic ties between the two companies can bear fruit."
SK Telecom and China Unicom revealed that other than joint handset sourcing, they are undergoing discussion for achieving results in other areas of cooperation under the strategic tie-up, such as joint VAS development, joint platform development, marketing/distribution, CRM, network, etc.
SK Telecom and China Unicom (CEO Chang Xiaobing, www.chinaunicom.com) revealed on the 26th that Korea and China had decided on "joint handset sourcing" in order to target the two markets of Korea and China.
This is the first time that any conspicuous achievements have been announced since the strategic alliance between SK Telecom and China Unicom.
On June 21, SK Telecom established a contract for purchase of CBs worth USD 1 billion issued by China Unicom Limited, a company listed in Hong Kong. Also, through the establishment of a "Strategic Alliance for CDMA Services" with China Unicom, SK Telecom has announced alliance and cooperation in joint handset sourcing, joint development of additional services, joint platform development, marketing / distribution, CRM, and network.
As a result, for specific implementation of the 6 areas of strategic alliance between SK Telecom and China Unicom, a consultation group and task force consisting of 50 working level members from both companies are in operation, with discussions on specific ways of cooperation through mutual provision of consulting in each area, sharing of expertise, provision of market information, etc.
On September 11, a workshop was held in Busan for two days on the 6 areas of strategic partnership with participation by the CEOs of the two companies, with an agreement to make it a priority to pursue joint handset sourcing.
Through such an agreement, SK Telecom and China Unicom has agreed to source joint handsets of 6 types in the first half of 2007 for the Korea and China markets, and plan to continue expanding the supply of model types and volume by 2008.
The 6 types of joint sourcing handset models released in the first half of 2007 are subject to discussion among the 3 handset manufacturers, Samsung, LG, and Motorola, mostly targeting the mid-to-high-end market in China, with differentiated handsets based on CDMA20001x network with applications such as high quality LCD, 2 Mega Camera, and Bluetooth.
Going forward, in order to target the high-end and low-end markets of both countries, other than the 3 handset companies, diverse handset line-ups are planned for deployment upon discussion between Korean, Chinese and foreign handset makers. Through cooperation between the two companies, joint supply of mid-to-low priced models aimed at the China and Vietnam markets are also planned.
Through the joint sourcing of handsets, SK Telecom expects the acquisition of "handset price competitiveness through an economy of scale", along with the differentiated wireless Internet and VAS of CDMA services that target the 20 million SK Telecom subscribers and 35 million China Unicom subscribers. Moreover, it is expected that this will contribute to the expansion of CDMA services within China.
SK Telecom’s CEO Shin-Bae Kim remarked, "It is quite significant that since the strategic alliance with China Unicom, we have been able to overcome various difficulties, such as the difference in the telecommunications environment of the two countries, to acquire handset competitiveness, which is the most important. As our first achievement comes based on the devoted work of the two companies, we hope that the joint sourcing of handsets will lead to a dramatic development of China Unicom’s CDMA business and a turning point for China’s CDMA business.
China Unicom’s CEO Chang Xiaobing remarked, "The joint sourcing of handsets will be an important basis for development of CDMA operations, and we will provide full support so that the diverse strategic ties between the two companies can bear fruit."
SK Telecom and China Unicom revealed that other than joint handset sourcing, they are undergoing discussion for achieving results in other areas of cooperation under the strategic tie-up, such as joint VAS development, joint platform development, marketing/distribution, CRM, network, etc.