Tech earnings this week highlighted the importance of mobile communications to IT, as companies including Apple, Samsung, Facebook, AT&T and Texas Instruments reported mixed results for the quarter ending in June.
Apple and Samsung earnings underscored competition in the mobile market. Reporting Tuesday, Apple said revenue was up 1 percent year over year to US$35.3 billion, while profit declined 22 percent to $6.9 billion.
The lack of a new hit product, competition from Android-based devices and sagging sales overseas, particularly in China, hampered earnings for the quarter. Apple sales in China declined 4 percent year over year. The overseas results indicated a problem other IT companies face.
"The continued recession in Europe and slowing growth in China will offset improvements in the US, Japan, and some emerging markets," according to Forrester analyst Andrew Bartels, in a recent forecast for IT sales this year.
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