Dec. 24, 2001

Taiwan's mobile telephone manufacturers estimate their shipments will double in 2002 to more than 42 million pieces, on the expectation that deliveries to international players will pick up sharply.

Compal Communication Inc. and Compal Electronics Inc. expect to ship a combined total of 10 million phones next year, more than 10 times the amount they shipped this year.

Acer Communications & Multimedia Inc. plans to ship 10 million mobile phones next year, up 40% from this year. ACM is Taiwan's largest mobile phone maker.

GVC Corp. and DBTEL Inc. both plan to ship 20% more phones than they did in 2001.

International players including Ericsson and Siemens have begun to place orders with Taiwan's manufacturers since early this year.

Compal Electronics points out that the rollout delay of the phones built on general packet radio service technology explains why its own shipments are estimated at only 100,000 phones and Compal Communication's at only 800,000 phones this year. In 2002, an injection of orders from China is expected to boost Compal's shipments to three million phones, and an influx of GPRS orders from Motorola Inc. could swell Compal Communication's shipments to seven million phones.

DBTEL is optimistic about the future of its own-brand phone in Taiwan and China but outsourcing contracts from Siemens will help expand the company's total shipments to between 10 and 15 million mobile telephones.

ACM expects shipments to beat its previous projection of six million phones, and to reach 7.5 million phones this year, thanks to the smooth output of Motorola's T191 models. The company forecasts its shipments will soar 42% next year to around 10 million phones