Still, Komiyama said the year was clearly going to be a “tough” one. He predicted sales would drop 5-6 percent in the face of faltering consumer demand. Sony Ericsson, meanwhile, would be focusing on its high-end, higher-margin devices, even if it meant having a smaller lineup of products. It won’t be completely eliminating its cheaper phones, since some markets still demand them. And while SE has reduced its research and development budget as part of its cost-savings efforts, Komiyama said it would not further cut the percentage of revenue it puts into R&D to be prepared for a market recovery.

Will SE maintain its narrow hold on third place? It may against Motorola, which is still flailing and doesn’t expect to have any exciting products out until at least mid-year. LG will be tougher to compete against. The Korean company is pushing its mobile division hard, and has its own aggressive goal of reaching a 10 percent global share. It recently revealed it had sold 5 million Viewty phones in the U.S. and Western Europe a year after its launch, with 2.6 million units sold in Europe, Sony Ericsson’s traditional stomping ground. LG is also taking the opposite direction of SE, and says it will focus on lower-end handsets with single-digit margins.