Garmin – Asustek Partnership To End
After disappointing sales of its nuvifone, we reported back in September that Garmin was considering its options with its smartphone unit. Now, Reuters is reporting that Asus plans to end its mobile phone agreement with Garmin, thereby paving the way for Garmin to exit the smartphone business altogether.
A company official for Asustek said more details will be available Tuesday. Although the smartphone market is enjoying huge growth, the Garmin Asus partnership hasn't delivered the volumes either company had hoped for.
If you'll recall, the nuvifone was initially met with much anticipation and hype. However, that excitement dwindled as the smartphone faced one delay after another and other offerings such as the iPhone became available.
By exiting the smartphone market, Garmin could improve its earnings and also free up some resources to begin competing in other markets, such as navigational apps for the iPhone and Android platforms. Garmin's rival TomTom currently offers a navigation app for the Apple iPhone.
