SK Telecom, EarthLink dump $200 million on Helio
by Darren Murph 
posted Jul 4th 2007 at 7:52PM
As Amp'd scrambles for life and limb and Palm sees its once tight grip on the market slipping away, Helio is being rewarded with a pair of checks worth $100 million apiece. Reportedly, SK Telecom and EarthLink are set to inject a substantial amount of cash into the MVNO, as it has supposedly burned through the initial $440 million initially put forth. Recent financial results from Helio have been less than encouraging, but obviously someone up the ladder thinks it's wise to forge ahead through treacherous waters. Of course, just about anything can survive with enough funding to back it, but unless things get turned around real quick like, Helio isn't likely breathe new life into the oft neglected MVNO universe.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jamar @ Jul 4th 2007 11:38PM
It would help a lot if SK Telecom would just put more effort into doing something at Helio. A phone selection of just 3 phones won't do it. I want Helio to get to the point where every post about a cool Korean phone here is P.S.-ed with "Expect to see this on Helio shortly as the..."
Daniel @ Jul 5th 2007 3:11PM
More phones would be great. Helio is just stuck on having exclusive devices so they can load them up with their exclusive content.
They are so small that the big guns like LG and Motorola have refused to build them exclusive handsets.
Luckily, Samsung and Pantech seem to be a bit more Helio friendly taking a risk and providing them with their own phones.
Jamar @ Jul 5th 2007 10:45PM
Problem? Those Samsung phones aren't exclusive to Helio. The Drift and Heat been out in China (in GSM and CDMA form) for at least a couple of months now. The Ocean is their only exclusive. And I don't get it- isn't the point of Helio to sell those cool Korean phones here? LG and Moto are already making great phones in Korea(for Moto a good Helio exclusive might be the RAZR2, which SK Telecom is already getting), might as well just insert the Helio UI and sell them here.
Joe @ Jul 5th 2007 10:58AM
I think they need to get on Sprints arse and get them to expand their 3G into more areas. Verizon has EVDO in my area but Sprint doesnt, that killed it for me with the Ocean.
:o @ Jul 7th 2007 3:49AM
Daniel, Samsung is the one of the top guns with Motorola and LG
Samsung top Motorola so now Samsung has been in number one spot for along time now
Motorola is in the 2nd place
while LG is in 3th