Following the debut of its four own-brand Smartphones at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Taiwan-based PC manufacturer Acer announced on April 8 that it will launch these own-brand Smartphones in China by year-end 2009, Reuters reported. Meanwhile, the company stated that it is still in talks with two Chinese telecom operators regarding possible tie-ups for selling Smartphones in China, the Shanghai Daily reported, quoting Acer's CEO J.T Wang. Wang stated that Acer Smartphones will be available globally in the third or fourth quarter of 2009. The company, however, declined to reveal any further details regarding phone prices and names of operators. Furthermore, the company also plans to double the number of retail stores in China by year-end 2009, up from 800 stores currently, and set up a software R&D center in Shanghai, according again to the Shanghai Daily.