ST, Ericsson, wireless, modem, semiconductor, Nokia, financial How long has ST-Ericsson got?

LONDON – Gilles Delfassy, president and CEO of wireless chip joint venture ST-Ericsson (Geneva, Switzerland), said it's tough right now but that the company is encouraged by the traction it is getting for its new products.

He was talking to analysts on a telephone conference to discuss ST-Ericsson's second quarter 2011 financial results. And the ST-Ericsson situation IS tough right now. The trouble is it is set to remain tough for the rest of 2011 and probably throughout 2012. And the rate at which the company is generating losses begs the question how long STMicroelectronics and Ericsson can afford to wait for things to come good.

The company made a net loss of $221 million on sales revenue of $385 million in the second quarter. The third quarter, in which sales would normally see a sequential jump, is going to be flat.

The reason for the flat sales is because the so-called legacy products, those created before the formation of ST-Ericsson in February 2009 are declining rapidly while the new chip designs and platforms have, in many cases, yet to reach volume. ST-Ericsson now reckons that new products are responsible for about 45 percent of the $385 million sales in 2Q11 but a large part of the problem is that ST-Ericsson was strongly coupled to Nokia, which is having its own annus horribilis.

And even as Nokia turns to Microsoft and the WindowsPhone operating system for its future smartphones that means Nokia is turning to Qualcomm for those chipsets, at least initially.

But the design-win traction that Delfassy is so encouraged by is only good to the shareholders in ST-Ericsson if the company gets designed into smart phones and tablet computers that go on to be a roaring success. Any number of design wins at mobile device wannabes or has-beens who go on to sell just a few units will do ST-Ericsson little good.

It is therefore all about being in the winning smartphone and tablet computer designs. And the fast moving mobile device market is not any easy one to second guess.
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