Sony Ericsson holds on for better days, or until the Idou release

Later this year, perhaps, Sony Ericsson might have some good news -- maybe from the release of its Idou phone, with its rumored 12-megapixel camera. But that better day is a long way off as the partnership posts its third straight quarter of losses on Friday, this time to the tune of $387 million.

Analysts expected losses in about that range after the group gave out preliminary guidance last month, so the effect of bad news on the company's stock was minimal. The announcement that the company would also lay off 2,000 workers probably didn't hurt either.

An acerbic observer, however, finds herself wondering if justice wouldn't best be served by first canning the management that has so utterly fallen down on either getting better Sony Ericsson smartphones to market or finding a market that doesn't care as much. Apple, Research In Motion, Palm, and even Microsoft (in its capacity as owners of the Sidekick handset) are charging toward market with high-end, buzzworthy gadgetry. Nokia, on the other hand, has put a great deal of effort toward establish itself in developing markets -- not a short-term strategy, as those reading the company's Q1 report yesterday will agree, but a strategy nonetheless.

Sony Ericsson, meanwhile, has focused mainly on more developed markets. Analysts have been quoted here and there saying that the firm is refocusing on the smartphone market, but other than the Idou, there's not a smartphone expected from Sony Ericsson for the rest of 2009. Meanwhile, the company's current handset offerings retail for about twice as much as devices from rivals such as Nokia (dropping not at all over the course of the last year), and the company reports that it's lost market share -- down two points to about 6%.

The company further reported that it shipped 14.5 million handsets last quarter, down 9.7 million from the Q4 2008 holiday season and down 7.8 million year-over-year. In an interview with Reuters, CEO Hideki Komiyama said that at least that situation appears to be stabilizing, with the US and Europe showing "signs of correction" for demand. That claim matches up with Nokia's assertions during its quarterly earnings call on Thursday.