Fire Could Force Manufacturers To Reduce Prices Android Tablet

Seoul (Reuters) - Asian technology companies came under pressure on Thursday to cut prices for their Tablet PC, after Amazon.com launched a fire to the mass market-friendly $ 199.

Samsung Electronics Sony Corp., have big plans ambitious Asian tablet makers to take on Apple iPad if it is the gold standard in the booming market.

With me-too type products priced about the same level as the starting price of $ 499 IPAD, none of them however have been able to obtain a significant market share from Apple.

So far, Samsung has been considered the strongest opponent in the IPAD and some analysts suggest it could lose its position as number 2 in the highly anticipated fire.

South Korean company marketing campaign tablet has stumbled in recent months because of legal attempts to ban sales of Apple Movie Samsung in Australia, the United States and Germany, more than any other claim of patent infringement.

Kindle the fire, while it lacks many of the high-tech bells and whistles common on the shelves of the cameras in the 3G wireless, it could mean the end of a series of devices based on the system Google Inc . Android.

"The price is essential to gain ground on market shelves ... Rival manufacturers have failed to attract consumers as they have adjusted the price level IPAD without matching its content offering," said Adam Leach, an analyst at research firm Ovum.

"Amazon retail business model allows the company to support the device on the premise that consumers are buying more from Amazon, is that physical goods and digital content."

Galaxy Tab Samsung, Sony S zoom compressed Motorola and many other Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc. run on Android, which Amazon also uses fire and combined with its online store.

Price fire in less than half of the iPad - even stripping expensive components and functions - Internet Retailer hopes to have the device to millions of consumers' hands, then in the Amazon books, movies, music and other content.

SAMSUNG Hard

Samsung Galaxy 10.1 new tablet is about the same price as the iPad. Even at that price, a profit margin of nearly 5 percent, it is difficult for Samsung to drastically reduce prices, analysts said.

Tablet shipments worldwide will more than triple to 60 million units this year and a complement of 275.3 million units in 2015, research firm iSuppli provides IHS.

Apple dominates the North American market pill, with 80 percent of the 7.5 million units sold during the second quarter of 2011, Strategy Analytics said.

Analysts had expected Amazon to the tablet for about $ 250, about half the price of the Apple iPad, which starts at $ 499.

Sony has promised in January to become the world's No. 2 maker tablets - Behind the Apple - by 2012, and Sony executives have since taken up the ambitious claim.

"We hope the Amazon platform ... pressure on other iPhone competitors, since it is unlikely to be able to compete, price and value," UBS analysts in a note.

"Of the $ 199, we believe Amazon tablet has the potential to interfere with the market and especially ... the market vendors not iPad tablet others find difficult to match Amazon's price."

HP's four rooms TouchPad Tablet for $ 99 just six weeks after the launch created a strong demand for its soon-to-be-killed product, a sign of price changes in the critical area.

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