CES: Qualcomm boss talks up mobile innovation

LAS VEGAS: Qualcomm chief executive Paul Jacobs has set his company's sights on developing nations and emerging markets.

Speaking at his keynote address at CES 2012, Jacobs said the chip maker expects more than half of smartphone sales to come from emerging markets by 2015.

Much of that growth is expected to come from China, where Qualcomm estimates 300 million people currently rely on mobile devices as their primary source for internet access. Additionally, India, Brazil and southeast Asia have been singled out by the company as target markets.

To help serve those markets, Jacobs said the company has undertaken programmes to help build local economies, such as providing tablets to local schools and selling mobile phones to entrepreneurs who then rent out minutes and data access to other residents.

While such mobility campaigns have been around for years through charitable efforts, Qualcomm also sees the programmes as helping to build a customer base in rapidly expanding markets.

"Mobile will be one of, if not the biggest driver of innovation and growth in years ahead," Jacobs said.

"For many, mobile is the primary way they connect to the internet and for some in emerging countries it is the only way."

One key component to that strategy will be the Snapdragon platform. The mobile processor platform, which combines a multi-core ARM CPU with a GPU to provide a complete low-power processor for mobile devices.

While Snapdragon has primarily seen deployment in high-end smartphone handsets, Qualcomm expects it to make its way into a full range of phones, tablets and netbooks.

The company estimates around 350 Snapdragon devices, ranging from low-cost to high-end systems, are currently in development.

Jacobs also expects the reach of Snapdragon to grow with the upcoming release of the ARM-compatible Windows 8 and the Snapdragon S4 chipset.

"Snapdragon S4 will drive the next generation of smart devices," declared Jacobs.

"It is going to be powering your smartphone, your TV and your ultra-portable notebook."