BARCELONA: Phone and Internet firms are rolling out cheaper handsets and may turn to hot-air balloons to boost network coverage in developing countries, where sales of smartphones are booming.

Even though mobile network coverage is generally weaker in the developing world, firms are mining a gold rush of new clients in China, India and beyond, as smartphone demand slows in the rich world.

Several top phone and Internet companies attending this week’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the biggest wireless telecom fair on the planet, have unveiled new products aimed at developing markets.

Smartphone sales grew by 23 per cent worldwide in 2014 to 1.3 billion units, according to a study by German research institute GfK.

As demand has slowed in smartphone-saturated markets such as Western Europe, Japan and North America, it has exploded in Latin America, Southeast Asia and Africa.

In response, US online giant Google has launched a low-cost smartphone in India for $105 (94 euros).

Its US rival Microsoft says it plans one that will cost $29 while the Mozilla foundation, owner of the Firefox search engine, plans one for $25.

Published in Dawn March 4th , 2015

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