South Korea's largest mobile network operator, SK Telecom is reported to be reconsidering a decision to start selling Nokia supplied mobile phones, following claims of poor reviews from customers of rival network, KTF.
Nokia launched the 6210 model phone on the KTF network in April after the government relaxed restrictions on the handset user interface that it had required all phones to support.
Speaking at the launch, Colin Giles, Senior Vice President, Greater China, Japan and Korea, Nokia said that "the time is now right for Nokia to enter the Korea market,"
"With the launch of 3G WCDMA networks and the move by the local operators to more open international standards, Korea has become a more viable market for global players.
Citing industry sources, The Korea Times said that sales of the Nokia phone had been sluggish on the KTF network amid poor reviews of the phone's capabilities. SK Telecom had originally planned to release 6210s during the first half of the year, but is now considering canceling the handset, sources said.
An SK Telecom spokesman downplayed the rumors, saying that the company hasn't discussed the possibility of canceling 6210s. The delayed release is due to network inter-working tests taking longer than expected, as well as adjusting equipment and software, he said.
"We expect Nokia to be a long-term business partner for us. It's not like 6210s would be the last Nokia handset we will be releasing,'' the SK Telecom official said.
While the Nokia 6210s is Nokia's first WCDMA device to be sold in Korea, Nokia has a long history in Korea having had manufacturing facilities in Masan since 1984.
SK Telecom is the country's largest network operator by subscriber numbers and according to figures from the Mobile World, the operator ended Q1 '09 with just over 23.3 million customers and a market share of 50%.
On the web: The Korea Times - Mobile World
Posted to the site on 27th May 2009
Posted to: www.cellular-news.com/story/37699.php