– CONCLUDES CONTRACTS WITH MAJOR PCS SERVICE OPERATORS IN AMERICA INCLUDING PRIMECO
– SUPPLIES PCS/DIGITAL CELLULAR HANDSETS IN NORTH, CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICAN REGION
HEI(President : Kim Young-Hwan) reported it will supply CDMA digital phones worth £Ü450 billions(total of 1.5 million handsets worth U$330 millions) to the mobile service operators in the United States and Central and South America, including PrimeCo, a major PCS operator in the United States, from this month.
In these export contract deals, HEI will supply PrimeCo, PCS operator in the southeastern part of the United States, a total of 1 million units – 500,000 PCS phones from this month until March of next year, followed by another additional 500,000 units from April of next year – and also another 500,000 units of PCS and digital cellular handsets in the United States, and Central and South America.
HEI will supply PCS phones to PrimeCo., a PCS service operator in the United States, through AudioVox, a major American handset distributor, and its contract deal of exporting 500,000 units in total, starting with 150,000 units presently under shipment, 100,000 units in December, and another 250,000 units in the first quarter of next year, is the largest single handset supply contract ever by a Korean handset manufacturer. Also HEI’s contract deals of exporting a total of 500,000 CDMA PCS/digital phones, including two contract deals of exporting 200,000 units each with PCS operators in Central and South American region, and 100,000 units with PCS operators in the United States, are making the prospects of Korean-made CDMA handset exports brighter.
Amidst a recent decrease in export of Korean products, cellular phones are expected to play the leading role for newly developed strategic export items. In particular, Gulliver(HGP-1200), the main export high quality PCS phone model in these contract deals, made a splash in the first half of this year in the domestic market with its ergonomical design and elegant color of champagne gold.
By releasing new models of ultra-light weight of less than 100g, and of folder-type phones with new design concepts, HEI plans to make a hit in mobile phone market inside and outside the country with its high-tech design and value. Meanwhile, the demand for CDMA PCS/DIGITAL cellular phones is expected to increase from 6 million handsets next year to 8 millions in 2000 in U.S, and from 3 millions next year to 4 millions in 2000 in Central and South American market. As the demand for CDMA cellular phones in the future international cellular phone market is expected to increase rapidly, domestic cellular phone makers will start exporting thier products abroad sooner than expected.
