Palm and Research In Motion may have been heading in different directions recently, but they're both trying to keep pace with a new breed of competitors in the rapidly evolving smartphone market. If their new devices and products in development are any measure, both companies seem determined to protect their turf.

Emboldened by settlements with Apple and AT&T, voice mail inventor Judah Klausner filed a new patent lawsuit on Tuesday against Google, Verizon Communications and others.

Cellphone sales in Western Europe in January-March fell 16.4 percent from a year ago, the first decline since research firm Gartner started tracking the market in 2001, as the economic slowdown hurt demand.

The chief executive of General Electric named several "players", including LG Electronics, when asked about the future of the company's appliance business, which the huge U.S. conglomerate recently said it may spin off.

Shares in LG Electronics tumbled more than 8% on market talk that top mobile phone maker Nokia may cut its handset prices and re-enter South Korea in the second half of this year.

Panasonic maker Matsushita posted on Monday a 15 percent rise in quarterly operating profit thanks to brisk sales of flat TVs, and forecast a larger-than-expected gain this year, with its mobile phones and DVD recorders also selling well.

South Korean mobile phone and appliance maker LG Electronics posted a strong quarterly profit on Wednesday, swinging from a year-ago loss, thanks to stellar earnings at its handset division and LCD panel venture.

Shares in LG Display fell more than 5 percent early on Friday, despite the firm's strong quarterly results, due to growing concerns that the market position of its key client TV makers is weakening.

Dutch electronics giant Philips continued to offload stock in its South Korean flat screen joint venture, selling about $1 billion worth of shares in LG Display.