Lenovo has made no secret of its ambition to expand into the U.S. smartphone market, and now the Chinese company is reportedly seeking a partner to help grow its already robust mobile device business. The president of Lenovo’s Asia-Pacific unit told The Wall Street Journal that Lenovo is talking to several potential partners about working together to make smartphones.
Japan’s NEC has been named as a possible Lenovo partner, since the two companies have already partnered in the personal computer market. NEC does have a handset business, but it has not been a big player in smartphones. About 18 months ago NEC said it would lay off roughly 10,000 employees, most of whom work in its mobile phone business.
Meanwhile Lenovo’s smartphone business has been booming. During its most recent quarter Lenovo reported a 74% increase in sales of mobile devices, primarily smartphones. Much of that increase came in China, where Lenovo has seen its market share increase dramatically. According to IDC, Lenovo now has 11% of the Chinese smartphone market. The company’s top competitors in that market include Samsung, Nokia and Apple, as well as more than 100 other domestic handset makers.
For the fiscal year ending March 31, Lenovo reported record sales of $34 billion. Most of its sales came from personal computers, a market in which Lenovo holds the number two position worldwide behind HP. 15% of Lenovo’s global sales came from North America.
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