Sony Ericsson Is Finally Ready to Come Out and PLAY

| Feb 14, 2011 | Consumer Devices | Analyst: Avi Greengart

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Event Summary

February 13, 2011 – Sony Ericsson has announced three new Xperia smartphones which will join the Arc introduced at CES. The Xperia neo offers many of the Arc’s features in a smaller case, while the Xperia Pro adds a sliding QWERTY keyboard. The Xperia PLAY is the first PlayStation-certified phone, and it includes dedicated game controls; 50 titles will be available at launch. All the phones will begin shipping in Europe in March, with the Xperia PLAY also coming to Verizon Wireless in the U.S. in April. Pricing was not disclosed.

Quick Take

Analytical Summary

• Current Perspective: Positive on Sony Ericsson’s new line of Xperia smartphones, as the PlayStation brand still has relevance, and it is extremely encouraging to see the company recommit to the U.S. market (and to CDMA, no less!). The Xperia Arc (introduced at CES), Xperia neo, and Xperia Pro are all fine products, but they are hard to differentiate from similar Samsung and HTC offerings. The Xperia PLAY, on the other hand, uniquely appeals to gamers with full PSP-style controls that slide down underneath the screen.

• Vendor Importance: Very high to Sony Ericsson, because the company needs its products to stand out based on features, not just design (where competitors are equally strong) or brand (which is not enough to drive sales). Sony Ericsson has been all but shut out of the critical North American market, and returning to Verizon Wireless (after eight years away) is critical for raising the prospects for its sales and its brand alike.

• Market Impact: Very high on the smartphone market in the U.S., because the leading smartphone platform will now be available at the largest carrier. The heaviest users and most disgruntled iPhone users at AT&T will switch, which may not be a bad thing for AT&T, but most AT&T iPhone users will stick with the carrier because they are on family or business plans. The biggest impact will be felt by Android licensees selling phones at Verizon Wireless over the coming year or so as feature phone subscribers choose iOS over Android and some current Android customers switch when their contracts expire.

CLIENTS ONLY

Current Perspective

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