Latest news with #mobilebusiness
Phone Arena
22-07-2025
- Business
- Phone Arena
Is Nokia really looking for a new partner after parting ways with HMD?
Perhaps one of the most iconic phone makers of all-time, Nokia, has stopped making phones for several years now. Although we've had Nokia-branded phones launched on the market even after Nokia decided to sell its mobile business, those were made by another company, HMD Global. However, Nokia and HMD Global will be parting ways next year, so the question remains whether or not we'll still see new Nokia phones released on the market after the collaboration between the two companies ends. To make things even worst for Nokia, HMD Global recently announced plans to scale back its operations in the United States. This means that Nokia phones weren't as successful as HMD hoped, so the Finnish company is now looking to cut its losses and remove itself from a very challenging market. - HMD Global, July 2025 Even though the collaboration between Nokia and HMD Global won't end until March 2026, the former is already looking for a new partner willing to continue releasing Nokia-branded phones. A Nokia Community Manager posted on the Nokia sub-reddit a reply to a user who asked whether or not the company will offer licensing deals for mobile phones after the collaboration with HMD ends next year. - Nokia Community Manager, July 2025 The comment has since been deleted from the thread, but not before the folks at Mobilissimo were able to screenshot it. While it's pretty clear that Nokia doesn't have another partner lined up to take over the mobile business from HMD Global, it remains to be seen how fast it will be able to find one. Nokia 8 Sirocco | Image credit: PhoneArena It's hard to believe that Nokia makes a lot of money from licensing its mobile brand. The Finnish company gains more revenue from its patent and network divisions, and this is happening for quite some time. It's also hard to believe that Nokia phones will become popular again, especially in an oversaturated market. Nothing, Oppo, Samsung, Vivo, and Xiaomi have become much more popular than Nokia, so the company that decides to make Nokia-branded phones will have a tough time returning the iconic brand to its former glory.
Bloomberg
30-06-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Apple Loses Bid to Dismiss Justice Department Antitrust Suit
Apple Inc. lost its bid to throw out an antitrust case brought by the US Justice Department and a group of state attorneys general on Monday, a victory for the aggressive posture taken by Biden administration enforcers. The lawsuit is an existential threat to Apple and could upend its highly lucrative mobile hardware business. The iPhone maker is accused of violating antitrust laws by blocking rivals from accessing hardware and software features on its popular devices. The government claims Apple has used its power over app distribution and the iPhone's features to thwart innovations that would have made it easier for consumers to switch phones.
Daily Mail
18-06-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
AO World scores record profits despite loss-making mobile arm
AO World enjoyed record earnings last year despite a disappointing performance from the electrical retailer's mobile business, which were a 'drag on profits'. The online electrical retailer, which was founded as Appliances Online, saw like-for-like adjusted pre-tax profits soared by 32 per cent to £45million in the year ending March. Profits rose faster than turnover, which increased by 7 per cent to £1.1billion thanks to higher membership of its Five Star discount scheme. AO further benefited from its product range expanding by more than 1,500 to cover categories beyond domestic appliances, including drones, cameras, and health and beauty products. Consumer retail revenues grew by 11.9 per cent to £831.9million, offsetting mobile-related sales declining by 11.2 per cent to £94.4million. AO told shareholders the new contract mobile phone market shrank by around 13 per cent during the year, which it blamed on lower customer demand, a dearth of handset innovation, and a shift towards disaggregated contracts. As expected, balance sheet goodwill and intangible values of £19.6million relating to the mobile business have been written off. AO said: 'We continue to review our strategy in this area and will not continue to fund material losses going forward.' Analysts at Peel Hunt said AO's 'language on mobile is strikingly blunt', and 'the direction of travel' for the business will likely be known by autumn. They added: 'AO's future mobile strategy is based on its virtual network offer, which is about to launch, and handsets through the site. 'It is a strategically important category for but management is intent on either getting the non-core mobile sites back to profitability this year or shutting them down.' T he acquisition of MusicMagpie in December contributed £30million to overall sales. Chief executive John Roberts, who founded AO in 2000 following a bet in a pub, said: 'We've delivered a record profit before tax performance, significantly grown our sales, and continued to delight our ever-growing customer base with trusted, outstanding service.' But AO warned its operational costs will continue going up in the coming year due to recent minimum wage and national insurance hikes. In early April, the National Living Wage increased by 6.7 per cent to £12.21 per hour, while employers' NI contributions rose from 13.8 per cent on annual salaries above £9,100 per year to 15 per cent on wages exceeding £5,000. Nonetheless, AO World said it was 'confident in our ability to continue to grow revenue' and make adjusted pre-tax profits of between £40million and £50million. The Manchester-based group struggled with plunging sales and supply chain issues after lockdown restrictions ended in 2021, as cost-of-living pressures gripped consumers. AO World shares have plummeted by around three-quarters from their 2021 peak. They were 0.2 per cent down at 100.6p on Wednesday morning. Adam Vettese, market analyst for eToro, said: 'Many investors will want to see shares climb higher, and AO will have to fend off stiff competition from online peers. 'If profit growth is going to convince investors, they'll want some consistency in return. If the next few updates can validate an upward trajectory, then the previous highs of last year might not seem so far away.'
The Sun
03-06-2025
- Business
- The Sun
Exact date you need to upgrade your phone as major mobile brand SHUTS DOWN after 15 years
USERS of a huge mobile brand have until June 30 to upgrade their phones. After that date, customers will no longer be able to download or install Android updates, making their device more susceptible to cyber attacks. LG announced in 2021 that it was closing its smartphone division with the South Korean tech giant preparing to shut down for good at the end of this month. Its first Android phone was released more than 15 years ago - although LG's roots in mobile go back even further. LG once held the crown as the world's third-bestselling mobile brand. But rivals emerged including Oppo and Xiaomi, as well as long-established competitors such as Samsung. Despite the impending closure, the company continued to push out important Android updates to existing users. Bosses committed to do it for three years. But that time is now up with the last update due to come out on June 30, marking the very end for LG's mobile business. In a statement, LG said it would like to "extend our heartfelt gratitude towards our customers who have loved and supported LG Electronics mobile products". The company added: "After the termination date, you will no longer be able to use the software upgrade services. "If you wish to use the services, we strongly recommend upgrading your software before June 30, 2025. "Furthermore, as we will no longer provide application updates, you will not be able to download default applications deleted upon initialization." Time for an upgrade? Analysis by Jamie Harris, Assistant Technology and Science Editor at The Sun LG's mobiles have all long been discontinued so you can no longer buy them. And now you won't get software updates either. Security updates are the key part, as experts at LG will no longer plug any loopholes that are uncovered, meaning hackers will be on the look out to exploit them. So, the safest option is to upgrade to a newer handset. Users have been reacting to the final curtain call for LG's mobile devices. "The loss of HTC and LG phones really stagnated the market," one user wrote on Reddit. "I loved the different things they tried. A leather back to a phone!"
CTV News
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
New Kitchener-Waterloo mobile dog daycare picks up pups in decked out school bus
PawTrips, the hot pink doggy daycare on wheels, on May 20, 2025. (Spencer Turcotte/CTV News)
