East meets West. TCL Communication’s Clement Chan and Alcatel’s Gregory Fermanian show with pride their company’s latest cell-phone models.-- PHOTO BY NONIE REYES

OF course, it’s a cliché to call it a marriage between the West and the East. But that’s exactly what happened when leading French wireless communications purveyor Alcatel forged a venture with China’s TCL Communication Technology in 2004 to conquer not just the Asian market but the world as well.

Alcatel has been in the Philippines since 1992, almost at the same time, or even ahead, of other mobile phone companies. Sadly, it failed to capitalize on this headstart. Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung and Motorola have overtaken it, becoming the preferred mobile phone brands among Filipinos. Nokia has captured the biggest slice of the market, while the other three players are giving it a solid run for the money.

This doesn’t bother Alcatel a bit. The company, newly revitalized after a partnership with TCL, is set to challenge the big four with its fashionable yet affordable phones, whose prices are far more reasonable than the leading brands. Recently, it launched two new cell-phone models in Manila—the OT-C825 and the OT-C701.

“We are going after a niche market,’’ says Gregory Fermanian, the Hong Kong-based director for communication and marketing of Alcatel mobile phones, in an interview. “This strategy will lead us to growth. We want to position ourselves as the No. 6 brand worldwide.

The OT-C825, which inspired some oohs and ahhs from the audience when it was presented onstage by Alcatel officials, is a trendy slider phone that fits comfortably in the hand with smoky brown tones and a leather finish. The triband phone has a built-in MP3 player and a 1.3-megapixed camera with webcam functionality. It’s a steal for P7,990.

The OT-C701 is a clamshell music phone available in black, powder blue or orange. The stylish phone also has an MP3 player and a VGA camera, allowing users to capture photos and record videos. You can have it for P5,9990.

“We want our products to look expensive so that you will be proud to show off your Alcatel phone wherever you are but, at the same time, make our handsets affordable,’’ Fermanian said at the launching event of the mobile phones at St. Tropezz Bar in Greenbelt 3. “Anyone can own our phones.’’

Alcatel is targeting the 25- to 40-year-olds, although it is also gunning for the younger market with its fashionable models. In fact, it has partnered with Elle, the French fashion magazine, to launch Elle-branded phones in the US.

Fermanian said the company has a team of 60 designers from Latin America, China, Japan and Europe just to come up with designs that will appeal to the different markets around the world. “We successfully served the low-entry market segment. We are moving gradually into the midincome market,’’ he said.

So why did Alcatel lag behind its competitors in the Philippines, known as the texting capital of the world?

“In year 2000 we started having problems with our mobile-phone brand. We did some restructuring. We were beaten out of the market. When you are weak, you let others come in,’’ he explained. As part of its restructuring and reengineering, the company looked for partners around the world that could help it revitalize the brand. In Asia it found a partner in TCL. Now, it is ready to battle the competition.

“We made a strong comeback in the Philippines in 2005. We are introducing a new face with an aggressive marketing campaign. We plan to introduce 15 to 20 new phones a year. We will also host cultural and fashion events not only in Metro Manila but also in key cities outside of it, such as Cebu, Palawan and Cagayan de Oro,’’ he added.

In 2005 Alcatel introduced two new cell-phone models. Last year it launched four and, so far, this year it has introduced eight.

The launching of the new products is part of Alcatel’s strategy to increase its global market share from around 6 percent at present. It also wants to be in the top six along with Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, Motorola and LG.

Does it dream of being No.1?

“If I tell you we want to kick out Nokia, that would be unrealistic, no? For us, we want to be the right alternative,’’ he said. “Right now, Samsung and LG are from Korea, Nokia is Finland. We want Alcatel to be the first Chinese-made mobile-phone brand with a French flavor that is recognizable worldwide.’’

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OF course, it’s a cliché to call it a marriage between the West and the East. But that’s exactly what happened when leading French wireless communications purveyor Alcatel forged a venture with China’s TCL Communication Technology in 2004 to conquer not just the Asian market but the world as well.

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