Apple corners market for display panels

Apple Inc.'s stranglehold on parts supplies forced a month-long delay in the release

of Research In Motion Ltd.'s PlayBook tablet computer, a report from Taiwanese trade

publication DigiTimes said Thursday.

It said PlayBook shipments were postponed partly because Apple had already booked

most of the available capacity of touch display panels.

The component is needed to manufacture the 7-inch BlackBerry PlayBook, which is set

for full commercial rollout starting on April 19.

RIM's answer to the iPad had originally been scheduled to debut in the first quarter

of 2011. Instead, the PlayBook will ship more than one month after Apple released

the second-generation of its market-leading tablet.

Citing component manufacturers in China, the report said PlayBook shipments were

postponed from the original schedule "due to a delay in software testing, as well as

shortage of touch panels."

DigiTimes said assembler Quanta Computer and connector maker Foxlink, also an Apple

supplier, are picking up the pace of component deliveries to RIM because they see

the PlayBook as one of this year's major tablet orders.

Apple said in its most recent earnings call that it had invested $3.9 billion (U.S.)

of its nearly $60 billion in cash reserves in long-term supply contracts. The

company declined to reveal the components involved, citing competitive concerns, but

analysts say the investment was related to touch displays.

That may not be a problem for Motorola Mobility after analysts said its products

have not differentiated themselves in a crowded market.

Deutsche Bank concluded that Motorola has sold about 100,000 Xoom tablets since its

launch in February versus Apple's sale of 300,000 iPads on the first weekend it was

available. DigiTimes said iPad 2 sales are "running at a rate faster than its

predecessor."

The 10.1 inch Xoom, which is being released at Best Buy and Future Shop stores in

Canada this week, is the first tablet to ship with Android 3.0, code-named Honeycomb

that is designed for large-screen resolution.

In a separate report, meanwhile, research firm Gartner Inc. said the number of

smartphone shipments will jump to nearly 468 million units this year. That will help

Google Inc.'s Android operating system surge to a 38.5 per cent market share,

followed by Apple's iOS at 19.4 per cent and Nokia Corp.'s Symbian operating system

at 19.2 per cent.

Gartner said more than 630 million smartphones will ship worldwide in 2012 and

Android will have cornered 49.2 per cent of the market versus the iOS with 18.9 per

cent. The BlackBerry operating system will take the third spot with a 12.6 per cent

share.