Mobile networks division does well in Western Europe
Alcatel’s mobile division made a good contribution to first quarter figures that show a decrease in sales, but income up overall.
The mobile division’s first quarter revenue decreased by 5.1% to Eur757 million from Eur798 million in Q1 2003, Alcatel said. But income on tat amounted to Eur70 million compared to Eur15 million in Q1 2003.
There was good growth in mobile networks in Western Europe and Africa as well as China, while the other regions in the world were “less robust” the vendor said.
The mobile networks business was a good player for the vendor, recording double-digit growth in its mobile core business with “continued momentum” in areas such as next generation applications (video and convergent payment) as well as in messaging, with more than 135 mobile customers in this domain.
However, the wireless transmission business, which registered a revenue decrease, did affect overall revenue. The handset business saw increased volumes to 1.9 million compared to 1.7 million in the first quarter last year, but that volume growth was offset by price declines.
“The handset business continued to weigh on the profitability of the segment,” Alcatel said. The vendor recently announced plans to “do an Ericsson” and offload the manufacturing burden to TCL.