Thursday, 5 April 2007

Comtech to Supply Module Design to Support ZTE's Vodafone Handset Project

Comtech, provider of customised module design solutions for the technology manufacturing sector in China, has signed a deal to provide customised module solution to ZTE, China’s second largest maker of telecom and networking gears...

Comtech, provider of customised module design solutions for the technology manufacturing sector in China, has signed a deal to provide customised module solution to ZTE, China’s second largest maker of telecom and networking gears.

The Comtech solution will be used in a line of low cost 2G handsets that are being produced by ZTE for Vodafone for sale in emerging markets such as India and Eastern Europe. Under the terms of the agreement, the handsets—with the Comtech technology installed—are expected to ship in the second quarter of this year.

In recent years, Comtech has provided a range of module solutions for ZTE's CDMA, GSM and 3G handsets.

Jeffrey Kang, President & Chief Executive Officer, Comtech Group, said, "Previously, we have mainly focused on providing solutions for mid- to high-end handsets. But this win proves we are also competitive in the low-end market, and can provide high performance and low-cost solutions, which can support the marketability of handsets in emerging markets.

"Since ZTE's market share is expanding not only domestically, but also internationally—in India's CDMA market and through this and other Vodafone projects—we expect to see our business with ZTE accelerating this year," said Kang.

"We serve all of the major handset producers based in China and have experienced strong and sustainable growth over the past year. We are also optimistic about demand in the handset market, which we believe will remain strong and healthy in 2007. This deal certainly backs up our confident business outlook in this space for the current year," he said.

This contract is the latest to be secured by Comtech with ZTE. In addition to module solutions for handsets, the company also provides ZTE with solutions in the wireless, broadband, optical and datacom sectors.