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诺基亚受挫 打击微软手机梦想
Nokia Corp. warned Thursday that its cellphone business is quickly deteriorating and that it will cut 10,000 workers, a setback that threatens partner Microsoft Corp.'s mobile aspirations.
诺基亚公司(Nokia Corp.)周四警告说,其手机业务正在迅速恶化,公司将裁员1万人。这一挫折对其合作伙伴微软(Microsoft Corp.)在手机领域的梦想构成了威胁。
The companies bound themselves together last year in a last-ditch effort to compete in a smartphone market dominated by Apple Inc. and Google Inc. Now, Microsoft faces the possibility that the company responsible for two-thirds of its mobile software shipments may not be strong enough to give it influence in mobile computing.
去年两家公司结成同盟,准备在由苹果(Apple Inc.)和谷歌(Google Inc.)主导的智能手机市场背水一战。现在微软面临着这样一种可能:占其手机软件发货量三分之二的诺基亚,它的实力或许不足以使之在移动计算领域产生影响。
Until this year, Nokia enjoyed a 14-year-run as the world's largest maker of mobile phones. But the company raised new doubts about its future Thursday by warning its losses will be worse than it expected just two months ago. It would not predict when the losses might end. Associated Press
周四,印度新德里的一家手机商店。在今年之前,诺基亚曾连续14年稳居世界最大手机生产商的位置。但该公司周四表示,其亏损情况将比两个月前预计的更加严重,这让外界对诺基亚的未来前景产生了新的怀疑。诺基亚拒绝给出亏损何时结束的预测。
The news sent Nokia's shares down 16% to $2.35 in New York trading, the lowest point since 1996. Nokia has lost more than three-quarters of its market value since Chief Executive Stephen Elop arrived in September 2010 and decided to bet the company on phones powered by Microsoft's operating system.
这一消息导致纽约市场上诺基亚的股价下跌了16%至2.35美元,创出1996年以来的最低价格。自首席执行长埃洛普(Stephen Elop)2010年9月份上任以来,诺基亚的市值已经蒸发掉四分之三有余。埃洛普决定把整个公司的前途都押在安装微软操作系统的手机上。
Its market value is now at $8.8 billion, 92% lower than where it stood when Apple released the iPhone and just above the price Microsoft paid last year for Internet phone company Skype.
诺基亚目前市值为88亿美元,较苹果发布iPhone时减少92%,仅比微软去年收购网络电话公司Skype的价格高一点。
Microsoft, which made its own big bet by choosing Nokia to build its flagship Windows Phone devices, is responding by increasing its aid for the handset maker. But if Nokia continues to struggle, the software giant may have to start searching for other options.
微软选择由诺基亚生产其Windows Phone手机也是一次豪赌。面对诺基亚的困境,微软正以加大对其援助来应对。但如果这家手机生产商依旧无法摆脱困境,微软可能就得着手寻觅其他选项了。
Microsoft declined to comment. Its shares Thursday rose 21 cents to $29.34 on the Nasdaq Stock Market, and are up 13% year-to-date.
微软拒绝对诺基亚的最新情况发表评论。微软股价周四在纳斯达克市场上涨0.21美元至29.34美元,该股今年以来的涨幅为13%。
Mr. Elop said on a conference call that Nokia plans to address its market share by competing more aggressively for low-end smartphone business "specific support from Microsoft."
埃诺普在电话会议上说,为解决市场份额问题,诺基亚打算在微软的“特别支持”下在低端智能手机领域加大竞争力度。
Nokia, he said, would pull back from many areas to focus its resources on a relatively small number of big markets, including the U.S., China, and certain other European and Asian markets.
他说,诺基亚将从诸多领域退出,把资源集中在数量相对少的大型市场上,如美国、中国,以及其他某些欧亚市场。
"The challenge, therefore, is how do you break through?" said Mr. Elop."We're now in a situation where we've got to make sure that we're breaking through in selling."
埃洛普说,诺基亚面临的挑战在于如何取得突破。他说,在现在的处境之下,我们得确保销量取得突破。
As the iPhone and Android took off and Windows foundered, Microsoft wagered last year that a partnership with the Finnish giant could make it a credible No. 3 player in the fast-growing smartphone market.
由于iPhone和安卓(Android)手机开始腾飞、Windows手机一败涂地,微软去年把宝押在了诺基亚身上,指望跟这家芬兰巨头的合作能使它在成长迅速的智能手机市场稳居第三。
Nokia agreed to adopt Windows Phone as its principal operating system, replacing its own Symbian software, and to pay licensing fees to Microsoft. In exchange, Nokia said Microsoft would provide it with billions of dollars to help develop and market products.
诺基亚同意采用Windows Phone替代塞班(Symbian)作为自己的主要操作系统,并向微软支付授权费。据诺基亚说,作为交换,微软将提供数十亿美元资金帮它开发、推广产品。
Nokia, however, has continued to lose ground around the globe. Analysts say that Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. dethroned Nokia in the first quarter of the year as the world's biggest cellphone maker.
然而从全球来看,诺基亚仍是节节失利。分析人士说,韩国三星电子(Samsung Electronics Co.)今年第一季度赶超诺基亚,成为全球最大手机生产商。
Nokia for the first time accounted for less than half of the total cellphone market in its home country of Finland, according to IDC.
据国际数据公司(IDC)统计,诺基亚在本土芬兰手机市场上所占份额首次不足一半。
The company has struggled on the low end in emerging markets that have long been key to its success. In Indonesia, for example, Nokia's market share dropped to 24% early this year from 52% in early 2010, according to IDC. Nokia lagged behind smaller competitors in launching "dual-SIM" phones, which let consumers save money by combining deals from two different service providers.
诺基亚一直挣扎于新兴市场的低端手机业务。新兴市场始终是诺基亚制胜的关键所在。据IDC统计,诺基亚在印尼市场上的份额从2010年初的52%跌至今年初的24%。在发布双卡手机方面,诺基亚落到了规模较小的竞争对手的后面。这种手机综合了两个不同电信服务提供商的协议,从而让消费者省了钱。
The loss of market share has weakened Nokia financially. In an effort to cut costs as its market position erodes, Nokia said it would cut 10,000 jobs in its mobile division by the end of next year. The cuts follow plans to eliminate about 14,000 jobs announced last year, but questions remained whether it would be enough.
市场份额的丧失削弱了诺基亚的财务实力。诺基亚说,由于公司的市场地位受到侵蚀,将在明年底之前削减1万个移动部门工作岗位,以削减成本。而在此之前,诺基亚去年就已宣布,打算削减1.4万个工作岗位,但外界质疑此举是否足够有力。
Nokia's mobile devices division employs 53,000, compared with 20,500 at rival Motorola Mobility Holdings, bought last month by Google.
Reuters周四,诺基亚公司宣布裁员1万人。诺基亚移动产品部门现有雇员5.3万名,其竞争对手摩托罗拉移动公司(Motorola Mobility Holdings)仅有雇员2.05万名。后者上个月被谷歌收购。
On Thursday, Nokia warned that the operating loss at its mobile devices unit would be larger than it had previously thought, saying it would post a negative margin greater than 3%.
诺基亚周四警告说,移动产品部门的营业亏损将比之前估计的要大,该部门利润率将低于负3%。
The company doesn't appear to be improving in the smartphone market either, saying competition had hit that business "to a somewhat greater extent than previously expected."
诺基亚在智能手机市场的状况似乎也并无改善。该公司说,竞争对这块业务产生的冲击力度比之前预计的要大。
Nokia said it shipped more than 2 million Lumias world-wide in the first quarter, compared with Apple's 35 million iPhones. In Western Europe, the Lumia's biggest market, IDC estimates Nokia sold 980,000 Lumias -- compared with 15.5 million Android phones, 7 million iPhones, and 2.5 million BlackBerrys.
诺基亚说,今年第一季度Lumia的全球发货量超过200万部,而苹果iPhone同期发货量为3,500万部。据IDC估计,诺基亚在西欧(Lumia的最大市场)出售了98万部Lumia。相比之下,安卓手机在西欧卖出了1,550万部,iPhone卖出了700万部,黑莓手机250万部。
Those sales numbers are hurting Microsoft as well. In the first quarter, Apple had 23% of the global market for smartphones, Android had 59%, and both were growing, according to IDC.
这些销售数据同时也在冲击着微软。IDC数据显示,今年第一季度,苹果智能手机在全球占据了23%的市场份额,安卓手机占59%,这两个比例还在不断增长。
Microsoft's operating system, meanwhile, came in sixth place, powering just 2.2% of smartphones, down from 2.6% a year earlier. Nokia and Microsoft are aiming for a 10% share of the smartphone market, though they haven't put a timetable on that target.
此外,微软的操作系统排名第六位,仅有2.2%的智能手机用的是这种系统,低于上年的2.6%。诺基亚和微软目前均力争在智能手机市场上获得10%的份额,不过它们并没有给出实现这个目标的时间表。
For now, Nokia and Microsoft still have the support of wireless carriers, which are looking for a competitor to Apple and Google. T-Mobile USA said its Nokia Lumia phone has been one of its five best-selling smartphones since January, and AT&T Inc. said it was pleased with sales of the device.
目前,诺基亚和微软仍拥有无线运营商的支持,这些运营商正在寻找能跟苹果和谷歌对抗的竞争者。T-Mobile USA说,诺基亚的Lumia手机是该公司今年1月以来最畅销的五款智能手机之一。美国电话电报公司(AT&T Inc.)说,对Lumia的销售情况感到满意。
An important test for the company will come later this year when Nokia is expected to roll out a new smartphone based on the expected fall release of Windows Phone 8.
诺基亚将于今年晚些时候迎来重要考验,预计该公司届时将发布一款搭载微软Windows Phone 8系统的新智能手机。Windows Phone 8的预计发布时间是今年秋季。
Nokia, however, hasn't been specific about when the new phones will launch. Until it sees more success in the market, it likely will grow more dependent on Microsoft's support.
不过,诺基亚尚未具体说明这款新手机的发布时间。诺基亚在市场上取得更多成功之前,该公司可能会愈发依赖微软的支持。