Symbian takes steps to strengthen its leading position on smarphones market

Symbian has made two announcements, revealing the steps the company plans to make in order to strengthen its leading position on the smarphones market.

Symbian plans to cut down its license fees, lowering them to $2.50 per unit. Up to now manufacturers had to pay $7.25 per unit for the first two million handsets and $5 for every handset thereafter. The new pricing models, which will be applied from July 2006 onwards, will enable manufacturers to offer lower cost devices, based on Symbian operating system.

Symbian also plans to develop a 3G mobile phone reference design in collaboration with Nokia Corporation and Freescale Semiconductor. The design utilizes Freescale's MXC300-30 platform, capable of handling calls and application processing in one unit. It will be showcased at the 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona. The reference design will enable manufacturers to target the mid-tier 3G market by releasing 3G capable, low-cost S60 smartphones. Handsets, based on this reference design, are planned to be released in the first half of 2007.

Source: Symbian