MediaTek, Facebook team-up targets emerging markets

MediaTek Inc. and Facebook Inc. have collaborated to gain wider market share in emerging markets. The mobile platform solutions provider will embed Facebook in its mobile devices through its MediaTek Runtime Environment (MRE) to better connect with their friends, family and co-workers, said the company.

MRE is a middleware technology designed for mobile developers and application providers to deploy services and content for 'smart-feature phones' (Note 1). The solution provides millions of users in emerging markets with the ability to enjoy rich online experiences previously available only on smartphones. MRE-enabled devices will enable many users to access Internet services such as Facebook, for the first time, stated MediaTek.

According to a recent study by media research firm Informa Telecoms and Media, emerging markets will account for 60 percent of the mobile market by 2013. With 70 percent of mobile handsets sold in emerging markets being feature phones, this global partnership underscores the significant potential to present users worldwide with a gateway to access Facebook.

Last year, phones powered by MediaTek chipsets represent more than 40 percent of the overall Indian handset market. With the launch of this global partnership, MediaTek is expecting more than half of its customers in India to adopt its MRE solution.

"Our new partnership with Facebook further reinforces MediaTek's focus on providing differentiated services and value for handset brands, giving them the means to offer affordable, compelling and differentiated mobile solutions to consumers in key emerging markets such as India," noted Cheng-Te Chuang, corporate VP of MediaTek.

"Every phone should be social and we're excited to be working with MediaTek to bring Facebook to more devices, in more markets around the world and helping users to connect and share anywhere, anytime," added Vaughan Smith, mobile partnerships and corporate development VP of Facebook.