Motorola admits it lost ground in mobile market

Motorola admits it lost ground in mobile market
Moto's got knocked down, but it's getting up again

Motorola hasn't been at the forefront of the mobile market in recent times, but it's getting back on the horse step by step.

Magnus Ahlqvist, Motorola's Vice President for EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) spoke to TechRadar at the launch of the Moto G, and discussed the firm's new direction.

"We're really starting to make a comeback as a company and it's a new start for us in terms of starting to rebuild our presence in Europe, the Middle East and Africa," Ahlqvist told us.

"We do have a big ambition, but for the last 18 months we have gone through a substantial transformation at Motorola."

A smaller presence

Ahlqvist: "Motorola never left markets"

"The US is our home base and we still have a big presence there and also in Latin America," he explained, but the firm has slipped in other regions.

"Motorola has had a smaller presence in EMEA recently, but that's natural for a company going through a major transformation."

Even though Motorola may have fallen away in various markets, in never disappeared completely, as Ahlqvist explains: "we never left markets, but we were smaller and now the ambition is that we're going to put all the building blocks in place to start to grow strength in the next couple of years."

Focus and discipline

It won't be getting carried away though, and the feeling at Motorola is a steady-as-she-goes approach, honing in on some core areas of mobile instead of trying to hit every base possible.

"We're going to be very consumer focussed. We're not going to make 40-45 products per year. We're trying to be really disciplined about addressing consumer needs."

Marcus Frost, Motorola's Senior Marketing Director for EMEA added: "[We'll] only add features where is makes sense for the consumer. The kinds of things you'll see us do are solving problems which are frustrating today's smartphone users."

It's small steps for Motorola, but it is moving forward and signs are looking positive - especially with the backing of Google.

John McCann
Global Managing Editor

John joined TechRadar over a decade ago as Staff Writer for Phones, and over the years has built up a vast knowledge of the tech industry. He's interviewed CEOs from some of the world's biggest tech firms, visited their HQs and has appeared on live TV and radio, including Sky News, BBC News, BBC World News, Al Jazeera, LBC and BBC Radio 4. Originally specializing in phones, tablets and wearables, John is now TechRadar's resident automotive expert, reviewing the latest and greatest EVs and PHEVs on the market. John also looks after the day-to-day running of the site.