Kyocera Wireless Corp. appears to have abandoned plans to build its much-hyped Kurv phone, a move that prompted the company’s Kurv technology partner, Wildseed Ltd., to file suit against the handset maker alleging breach of contract.
“We are extremely disappointed that Kyocera will not deliver the handset as promised to its customers,” said Eric Engstrom, Wildseed’s chief executive officer. “Over the last six months, after learning of Kyocera’s abandonment of the project, we have done everything in our power to help Kyocera find a way to meet its obligations under the contract. We first worked hard without success to reach some agreement with Kyocera’s former CEO, Skip Speaks. Then, when Mr. Speaks was replaced, we contacted Kyocera again and attempted to resume discussions. However, Kyocera’s new management refused to talk with us. As a result, having exhausted all other options, Wildseed had no choice but to file a lawsuit against Kyocera.”
A Kyocera spokesman declined to comment on the litigation, except to say that the Wildseed phone is “not part of the company’s current portfolio.” The company said the rest of its CDMA handset portfolio, unveiled in March, is proceeding as scheduled.
The Wildseed lawsuit comes a few months after the resignation of Kyocera’s top executives in the United States, Howard “Skip” Speaks and John Heffner. A veteran Kyocera executive, Tsuyoshi Mano, took over the reigns as part of an effort to more tightly integrate the Asian manufacturing company.
Kyocera inked its deal with Wildseed last year. In March, Kyocera unveiled the fruits of the agreement, the Kurv device, which it said would be available in the first half of this year. The phone used Wildseed’s Smart Skin technology, which the company describes as “intelligent accessories.” The skins fit over the outside of the phone and connects to the phone’s software, allowing users to change the phone’s user interface and application offerings by clipping on different skins.
Wildseed said it expects to unveil a GSM handset with its other handset partner, Curitel, at the CTIA Wireless IT show this month. Wildseed said the phone will be available in the first quarter of next year.
“Wildseed was really ahead of the curve,” said Alex Slawsby, an analyst in IDC’s Mobile Devices program. “I think Kyocera saw that initially as a way to differentiate their products.”
However, Slawsby said the company’s recent executive shuffling may have soured the deal.
Slawsby said Kyocera has been working to compete in the high-end mobile-phone market, looking to unseat players like LG Electronics Co. Ltd., but has had little success so far.
In other Kyocera news, the company opened a subsidiary in India to expand its business there.
