Ericsson and Symbian today announced the acquisition by Symbian of Mobile
Applications Lab, based in Ronneby, Sweden, a subsidiary of Ericsson Mobile
Communications. The addition of the Ronneby centre takes place under the
original agreement of the Symbian joint venture when it was agreed that each
shareholder would contribute key personnel to aid the development of Symbian's
EPOC operating system.
The entire staff at the Ronneby site will be transferred to Symbian, who will
develop the location into an EPOC development centre, building on existing
experience in implementing telecommunications, Bluetooth and user interface
technology. The Mobile Applications Lab was set up in 1997 by Ericsson Mobile
Communications and is situated in Ronneby's Soft Center industrial park,
renowned for excellence in software development.
Juha Christensen, Executive Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Symbian,
comments "The addition of the teams in Ronneby to the Symbian group is a
further boost to our recruitment efforts. With this we gain experienced staff
who will further develop key EPOC technologies. Since the launch of Symbian
six months ago we've seen an increase in headcount by approximately 70%. We
plan to expand our reach in the Wireless Information Device industry further
by opening up additional offices worldwide during the next six months. "
Jan Ahrenbring, Vice President of Marketing and Communication at Ericsson
Mobile Communications says: "Taking a leading role in industry initiatives
such as Bluetooth, Symbian and WAP is an important part of Ericsson's strategy
which will ensure us a strong position in the new telecomm's world. By this
deal we further strengthen the relation between Symbian and Ericsson. Working
with open standards enables us to offer consumers easy to use communications
solutions."
The transfer of the Ronneby offices heralds Symbian's presence in Scandinavia.
Based in the southernmost tip of Sweden, Ronneby is a two hour drive from the
Copenhagen-Malmö area. Symbian will initially transfer experienced staff
members to Ronneby and from this office seek to develop closer links with
technology companies and research centres throughout Scandinavia, a region
generally perceived to be two to three years ahead of the rest of the world in
wireless technology usage, mobile phone penetration and adoption of new
technology. Symbian has already developed a close relationship with the
University of Karlskrona/Ronneby, one of Sweden's leading IT institutions with
the second highest number new IT students in the country
Per Ericsson, President for the University of Karlskrona/Ronneby, comments
"We welcome Symbian to Ronneby and to close cooperation with the university;
developing links with IT students and joint R&D projects. The acquisition by
Symbian of Mobile Applications Lab in Ronneby's Soft Center is a huge step
forward to world leading software development and will provide further
employment opportunities within the region."
Symbian plans to develop the Ronneby site by developing a new complex within
the same site as the University, to create closer links with IT students, and
increasing recruitment in the region.
Ericsson is the leading provider in the new telecoms world, with
communications solutions that combine telecom and datacom technologies with
freedom of mobility for the user. With more than 100,000 employees in 140
countries, Ericsson simplifies communications for its customers - network
operators, service providers, enterprises and consumers - the world over.
Please visit Ericsson's Press Room at: http://www.ericsson.se/pressroom
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT
Paul Cockerton, Symbian
Phone: +44 171 208 1800
E-mail: paul.cockerton@symbian.com
Jan Ahrenbring, Marketing and Communications Director
Ericsson Mobile Communications
Phone: +46 8 764 14 60
E-mail: jan.ahrenbring@ecs.ericsson.se
About Symbian Ltd.
Symbian licenses, develops and supports the EPOC operating system - providing
leading software, user interfaces, application frameworks and development
tools for Wireless Information Devices such as Communicators and Smartphones.
Symbian aims to promote standards for the interoperation of Wireless
Information Devices with wireless networks, content services, messaging and
enterprise wide solutions.
With headquarters in London, and offices in Kanazawa, Japan and the San
Francisco Bay Area, Symbian is owned by Psion, Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia.
Symbian's website can be found at www.symbian.com
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