Today’s Japanese Cell Phone Merger - NEC, Casio, Hitachi
MobileTech Wireless Insight: Today’s Japanese Cell Phone Merger - NEC, Casio, and Hitachi Author: Eric Everson, “The MobileTech”
As explored by The Wall Street Journal today, cell phone makers NEC, Casio, and Hitachi have agreed to merge their cell phone operations. For some celebrity dating name fun, perhaps “NECasiotachi” will emerge?
What this merger really makes us question is, do these three companies have more to offer the already crowded handset market by joining forces? Will NECasiotachi become the new face of innovation within the wireless industry futures? To take a candid look at these brands with regard to their market share respective to the wireless industry specifically, these brands have all endured a certain fall from grace.
The wireless industry is the frontier of innovation today, so the question must be asked, “What can we hope to see emerge from this merger?” Having been in the trenches of the wireless industry for many years now, I believe the most strategic approach these companies could take would be to concentrate on the mobile hardware market as a means of driving development for the next generation handset. In considering the strengths of these brands, each of them is respectively savvy with regard to their hardware electronics, yet the Mobile Operating System (MOPS) environment could be fatal to this merger.
If this merger results in a handset that introduces milestones for handset innovation and is married with an innovative MOPS such as Google’s Andriod, the company might have a fleeting chance at revival. To take on the MOPS market with yet another Proprietary MOPS (pMOPS) and a second-rate handset could prove catastrophic. Combined these companies could seemingly move mountains together in delivering hardware-focused handset innovations. I believe that what this merged team needs is to create an innovation laboratory from the forefront to brainstorm, research, and design new designs.
On the horizon, the combined force of this company is sure to either make a revived comeback or at minimum one great 3-in1 acquisition target. Though the handset market is crowded, there remains significant innovation opportunity in the smartphone segment. Keep your eye on what’s to come from NECasiotachi!
Cheers, Eric Everson “The MobileTech”
Your innovative technologies insider!
Eric Everson is a leading mobile technologies researcher and is the founder of MyMobiSafe.com. If you would like to contact Eric Everson for interview or with research related inquiries contact him directly at EricEverson@Hotmail.com.