So it may be premature to say so, but it looks like the once-troubled Sony Ericsson has some reason to celebrate.
The company reported its earnings on Friday and saw profits for the second quarter in a row. These two quarters couldn’t have come at a better time, with Sony Ericsson losing big time and seeing market share drop over the last handful of quarters prior. It may be too early to say that the company is turning a corner, but there are a few reasons for optimism at Sony Ericsson.
High-end presence was a big plus for the company. Devices like the Xperia X10 have proven popular.
Unfortunately, the company has also slashed a third of its workers over the last two years. They now have about 8,000 workers.
Sales volume and market share did fall in the second quarter from a year ago, but the profits are still enough to keep the suits at Sony Ericsson smiling for now.
While these decisions have led to some success, many are largely crediting Sony Ericsson’s choice to go with Google’s Android O/S as a big component. Google’s popular operating system features on the Xperia X10 and on some of SE’s mini smart phones, so consumers are heading to those devices because they’re backed by the Android name.
Sony Ericsson knows that Google’s Android is key to their success, so they’ve announced a heavy Android presence on a lot of their upcoming phones. In going head-to-head with Apple’s O/S and with RIM’s BlackBerry O/S, the Android O/S has done quite well for itself and it’s looking like Sony Ericsson has hitched its wagon to a good star. Market share for Android surged to 9.6% in the first quarter this year, up considerably from the 1.6% it was doing a year ago.
So while rival Nokia keeps trucking with Symbian, an unpopular and clunky O/S that hasn’t been doing all that well, it looks like Sony Ericsson may pull past them. By going all in with Android, Sony Ericsson hopes that this rise in profits will continue through the remainder of 2010 and well beyond.
