SAO PAULO – 12 November, 2012 – MediaTek Inc., a leading fabless semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions today announced that its innovative chipset technology is set to power a new range of affordable, high quality, multimedia-rich Android smartphones being introduced to more users across Brazil.

With MediaTek’s newly released dual-core MT6577 processor, Brazil’s mobile phone users can look forward to smartphones with improved browser performance and a premium user experience similar to that of high-end smartphones at entry-to-mid-level prices.

Global brands such as Motorola leverage MediaTek’s solutions to develop entry-to-mid-level smartphones designed with ease of use and affordability in mind to cater to the needs of first-time smartphone users in Brazil. Motorola recently released its XT303 and XT305 entry-level smartphones as part of Motorola’s MOTOSMART family, powered and enabled by MediaTek’s smartphone solutions. The XT389 offers simple, one-touch access to contacts, entertainment and social networking with over 600,000 apps on Google Play™, bringing to life rich and immersive multimedia experiences. The Motorola MOTOSMART Dual SIM XT390 allows users the unique ability to switch seamlessly between two different carriers and service plans to best suit their needs – another value-added solution made possible on the MediaTek platform. 

At the same time, MediaTek also works closely with Brazilian brands such as Gradiente, Meu and Multilaser enabling them to innovate and speed up their time to market with feature-rich Android smartphones using MediaTek’s highly integrated mobile solutions. Some of these handsets soon to be released.

With smartphone sales in Brazil set to grow by over 76% year on year in 2012, analysts see the entry and mid-level smartphone segments as key growth drivers over the next five years. “Entry and mid-level smartphones are expected to account for nearly 60% of total smartphone sales volumes by 2017 in Brazil, driven by more consumers upgrading from feature phones to smartphone devices.’’ said Neil Mawston, Executive Director, Global Wireless Practice, at Strategy Analytics.

“We are very excited to be working with global and local partners to bring the benefits of MediaTek’s innovative smartphone solutions to more consumers in Brazil. As the eyes of the world will soon be on Brazil as it plays host to the World Cup and the Olympics in the coming years, we are proud to be able to leverage our deep knowledge of mobile technology to help our customers produce affordable, yet feature-rich Android smartphones that will no doubt help connect millions of first-time mobile users in the region to the sports and events they love most,” said Dr. Finbarr Moynihan, General Manager of Business Development, MediaTek.

MediaTek announced the launch of its new MT6577 platform for smartphones in June, featuring a dual-core 1GHz Cortex™-A9 application processor from ARM, a PowerVR™ Series5 SGX GPU from Imagination Technologies and MediaTek’s proven 3G/HSPA modem. The MT6577 was initially released with support for Android 4.0 “Ice-Cream Sandwich”, but has since been updated with support for Android 4.1 “Jelly Bean”.

About MediaTek

Since 1997, MediaTek has been a pioneering fabless semiconductor company and a market leader in cutting-edge systems-on-chip (SoC) for mobile devices, wireless networking, HDTV, DVD and Blu-ray. Our tightly-integrated, innovative chip designs help manufacturers optimize supply chains, reduce the development time of new products, and extend a competitive edge in crowded markets. Through MediaTek Labs, the company is also building a developer hub that will support device creation, application development, and services for the Internet of Things era. By building technologies that help connect individuals to the world around them, MediaTek is enabling people to expand their horizons and more easily achieve their goals. We believe anyone can achieve something amazing. And we believe they can do it every single day. We call this idea Everyday Genius and it drives everything we do. Visit mediatek.com for more information.

Today, one of every three mobile phones around the world is powered by a MediaTek chipset, and over 550 million MediaTek mobile chipsets were shipped in 2011 alone. Currently, MediaTek is ranked third in the smartphone applications processor market according to Strategy Analytics, with the majority of its thirteen-fold year-on-year growth in the first half of 2012 driven by the rapidly increasing entry and mid-level smartphone segments.