Operator Strategies Will Fuel Smartphone Growth in Emerging Markets

CAMBRIDGE, Massachusetts, December 10 - The smartphone market will climb to 37 percent of global handset sales in
2014 with emerging markets as the key growth engine, calling on operators and
vendors to make the most of the opportunity, according to a new report from
Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com), the telecom research arm of the Light Reading
Communications Network (www.lightreading.com).

Smartphone Forecast: Operator Strategies Will Fuel Growth in Emerging
Markets examines the state of the global smartphone market today, focusing on
operator and vendor strategies. It also looks at the intense struggle for
market dominance among the various software platforms: Symbian, BlackBerry
OS, iPhone OS, Windows Mobile, Android, and Palm's various systems. All this
is put into context with an analysis of the mobile services market and the
overall handset market. The report investigates in detail the state of the
smartphone markets in eight crucial markets: Brazil, China, India, Nigeria,
Russia, Turkey, the U.K., and the U.S. These case studies contain forecasts
of such metrics as handset sales by generation, annual smartphone
sell-through, and market shares by operating system. Each one also contains
detailed data on a key mobile operator in the market. Download an excerpt
(www.pyr.com/downloads.htm?id=1&sc=PRN121009_SMART) of this report.
Purchase this report online
(www.pyramidresearch.com/store/REPORT_SMARTPHONE_STRATEGIES.htm?sc=
PRN121009_SMART).

Pyramid estimates that smartphones will account for a growing share of
total handset sales, expanding from 16 percent in 2009 to 37 percent in 2014,
and will represent an enormous sales opportunity for vendors and service
providers across the globe, particularly in emerging markets, notes Omar
Salvador, senior analyst at Pyramid Research and lead author of the report.

"Although the U.S. continues to lead the globe in 2009 in smartphone
sales, Pyramid expects China to capture the number one position in 2010,
driven by operators' aggressive promotion of smartphones using wider
portfolios, more attractive pricing for services and new initiatives," says
Salvador. "Brazil, India, Turkey, and Nigeria will be the fastest growing
markets over the next five years with CAGRs of 43 percent, 39 percent, 37
percent, and 34 percent, respectively. Latin America will be the fastest
growing region at a compound annual growth rate of 48 percent, followed by
Africa and the Middle East with a 39 percent CAGR," he adds.

"With smartphone and data ARPS growth at the center of the strategies of
operators and handset vendors, the two will need to work together to make the
most of the opportunity," says Salvador. "Understanding local conditions will
be vital for operators, smartphone vendors, and OS developers, as operator
strategies differ substantively across markets based on the method of payment
(postpaid or prepaid), the prevalence of subsidies, the level of competition,
as well as the market shares of operating systems," he explains.

Smartphone Forecast: Operator Strategies Will Fuel Growth in Emerging
Markets is part of Pyramid's research report series. A blend of primary
research and qualitative analysis, Pyramid's research reports offer
comprehensive coverage of the fixed and mobile communications space and
enable those in the communications industry to stay ahead of changing market
dynamics.

Download an excerpt of this report here
(www.pyr.com/downloads.htm?id=1&sc=PRN121009_SMART). This report is
priced at US$2490 and can be purchased online here
(www.pyramidresearch.com/store/REPORT_SMARTPHONE_STRATEGIES.htm?sc=PRN
121009_SMART)or by contacting Amalia Vega at avega@pyr.com or telephone at
+1-619-229-9940.

For more information about Pyramid Research's products and services,
please visit www.pyr.com or contact us at info@pyr.com.

About Pyramid Research

Pyramid Research (www.pyr.com) offers practical solutions to the complex
demands our clients face in the telecommunications, media and technology
industries. Our analysis is uniquely positioned at the intersection of
emerging markets, emerging technologies and emerging business models, powered
by the bottom-up methodology of our market forecasts for over 100 countries -
a distinction that has remained unmatched for more than 25 years. As the
telecom research arm of the Light Reading Communications Network, Pyramid
Research works with Heavy Reading, providing the communications industry's
most comprehensive market data, trusted research and insightful technology
analysis.

About Light Reading

Founded in 2000, Light Reading (www.lightreading.com) is the leading
online media, research, and focused event company serving the US$3 trillion
worldwide communications market. Lightreading.com is the ultimate source for
technology and financial analysis of the communications industry, leading the
media sector in terms of traffic, content, and reputation. Light Reading's
research arms, Heavy Reading and Pyramid Research, provide the most
comprehensive communications research, market data, and technology analysis
in close to 100 markets around the world. Light Reading produces nearly 20
targeted communications events including TelcoTV, Ethernet Expo New York and
Ethernet Expo London, The Tower Summit @ CTIA, and Optical Expo, as well as
focused one-day events tailored for cable, mobile, and wireline executives.
Light Reading was acquired by United Business Media in August 2005 and
operates as a unit of TechWeb.

About TechWeb

TechWeb (techweb.com/aboutus), the global leader in business
technology media, is an innovative business focused on serving the needs of
technology decision-makers and marketers worldwide. TechWeb produces the most
respected and consumed media brands in the business technology market. Today,
more than 13.3 million* business technology professionals actively engage in
our communities created around our global face-to-face events, Interop, Web
2.0, Black Hat, and VoiceCon; online resources such as the TechWeb Network,
Light Reading, Intelligent Enterprise, InformationWeek.com, bMighty.com, and
The Financial Technology Network; and the market leading, award-winning
InformationWeek, TechNet Magazine, MSDN Magazine, and Wall Street &
Technology magazines. TechWeb also provides end-to-end services including
next-generation performance marketing, integrated media, research, and
analyst services. TechWeb is a division of United Business Media, a global
provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a
market capitalization of more than US$2.5 billion.

*13.3 million business decision-makers: based on number of monthly
connections

About United Business Media Limited

UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information
distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetization
of B2B communities and markets. UBM's businesses inform markets and serve
professional commercial communities - from doctors to game developers, from
journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists - with integrated
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information, go to www.unitedbusinessmedia.com.

    Press contact:
    Jennifer Baker
    +1-617-871-1910
    jbaker@pyr.com

Jennifer Baker, +1-617-871-1910, jbaker at pyr.com