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Jan. 9, 2009

Palm is capitalizing on all the publicity channeled through CES 2009 in Las Vegas by announcing the launch of its Palm Web-OS platform and its new Palm Pre, based on the same mobile platform.

At the time of writing this, it wasn't clear if the new device will save Palm as a company, but it generated enough noise to boost Palm’s stock more than 34.2 percent.

The Palm "Pre" will be available exclusively with Sprint Nextel in the first half of this year.

The two companies aren’t telling how long the exclusivity period will last, however. They also aren’t saying what the new device will cost either.

However, before naysayers point to Sprint’s recent history of losing its subscribers, here’s something company representatives are pointing to: the cost of the service over the lifetime of a data contract. Some numbers have been flying around at CES this morning and has a lot of people excited so far...

Stephane Maes, v.p. of smartphone product marketing at Palm said one of the key highlights of the device is that users can have multiple sessions simultaneously.

He added “our mission has been about managing people’s lives. The ability to manage work e-mail, contacts and personal email is built into the new device. Rather than jumping back and forth between mobile applications, wireless users can get it all in one single place.”

Some people won't want Palm's new Pre without a specific data plan. A Sprint marketing flier compares the company's messaging and data plans with those of AT&T and Verizon Wireless, and states the minimum savings are at least $240 when considering the life of a contract and the rates of the other two wireless carriers.

Consumers on Sprint’s popular $99.99 unlimited plan can save $480 compared with comparable offers from Verizon and AT&T, for example.

Palm's new device has both a QWERTY keyboard and a touch screen. The email and the integration of a calendar, a contacts page and more was developed in-house by Palm.

The new platform was designed to allow a broader range of partners, including developers, hardware suppliers and accessories manufacturers.

As can be expected, all eyes will be on wireless and mobile application developers to see if they can pull themselves away from the iPhone, Google's Android and other mobile platforms to work on Palm's new Pre.

David Owens, director of consumer marketing at Sprint says "the iPhone is more of an entertainment device, and the BlackBerry traditionally has appealed to business users but the beauty of this is that it's really hitting dead in the middle.”

The new OS/smartphone should stirr up sentiment for Palm shares and put to bed concerns over the financial viability of the firm, at least in the near term, he added.

Key issues that still need to be addressed include the timing and the overall success of the launch at Sprint Nextel, marketing and pricing strategies for the new device, Palm’s success vying for developer support and the general level of interest from other Tier 1 wireless carriers.

In a research note, Avi Cohen of Avian Securities said it looked like attendees at Palm’s press event at CES today didn't leave disappointed, and Avian’s initial reaction to the new Web OS and Pre model was decidedly positive.

“The user interface strikes us as elegant, intuitive, sufficiently differentiated, and we think this represents a legitimate competitor to the iPhone's interface. We are impressed by the platform’s messaging, calendar, e-mail, contacts and Web browsing functions, as well as by the ease of managing and navigating between tasks,” Cohen said.

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    This article was featured on Business 5.0 and on Tech Blog.

Source: Palm Inc.