Motorola executives say they are confident third-generation (3G) mobile-phone networks will be launched on schedule later this year, despite scepticism from industry observers. The No 2 handset maker has put its money behind its prediction this month by introducing its first mass-production 3G phone, the A820. The phone will be sold in Britain, Italy and probably Hong Kong as service providers get the advanced networks running in the third quarter. Ron Garriques, senior vice-president for Motorola's worldwide product line management, said: 'We expect to see 3G operational in a number of countries this year. We don't put anything on the shelf that is not going to sell.' An analyst recently said there was zero chance of Hutchison launching 3G services in Britain on time this year. Another, Andrew Seybold, said in an article for Wireless Outlook that even if 3G networks were ready, there might be a shortage of handsets as manufacturers were waiting until they had customers lined up for new products. Some industry observers have said it would take until 2004 before 3G truly arrived. John Thode, Motorola vice-president and general manager for 3G consumer products, said the negative spin surrounding 3G should be seen in the same light as the overly positive spin of earlier days. 'Three years ago, there was a lot of hype about how everything was going to happen in 2001. Six months ago, we started to hear a lot of hype about how nothing was ever going to happen,' he said. Mr Thode said Motorola expected to sell 'a few million' 3G handsets this year. However, Motorola is also preaching caution. When it arrives, 3G will be the latest horse the mobile phone industry has backed as the next big thing. With high-speed networks allowing Internet browsing and the rapid exchange of video and audio files, there are hopes 3G will help boost handset sales, which shrank for the first time last year, and provide more revenue for network operators. But Motorola says it is not charging into 3G with the reckless abandon that surrounded other technologies, such as WAP (wireless application protocol) and GPRS (general packet radio services), which were heavily hyped and then failed to deliver what consumers expected. 'It used to be build it and they will come. We can't afford to operate that way anymore,' Mr Thode said. Motorola is taking a more cautious approach by teaming up with network providers so there is a joint stake in getting handsets available and networks running as soon as possible. 'With GPRS it was an all-out effort to get it . . . and invest as soon as possible and then hope the market would develop around it. This time, we are taking a more careful and measured approach,' Mr Thode said. 'Six months prior to the launch of GPRS we were shipping handsets to every operator who wanted them for free, just to get the phones out on the market so people would start using them. That won't happen this time around.'
