In the three months leading up to September, HTC reports a net loss of NT$2.97bn (£62m). Samsung on the other hand, estimates it profit as 10.1 trillion won (£5.85bn), up from last quarter's 9.5 trillion won (£5.5bn)
Once the dominant player in the Android market, HTC has been slowly falling further and further behind over the last year or so. Its latest flagship device, the HTC One, is widely regarded as one of the best phones of the year, but it has failed to reverse the company's fortunes.
Samsung has also produced some brilliant high-end devices this year, including the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3, but its success is likely strongly linked to its bafflingly huge range of mid-range phones. These have been very successful in China, the world's largest smartphone market, where Samsung maintains 17-18 percent market share.
HTC's new CEO, Eric Xu, was installed on 1 October, and while he's obviously got his work cut out for him, he'll have to set about making the most of his tenure quickly. As part of HTC's strategy to keep the company fresh and nimble, the board of directors has decided to rotate the position of CEO among three top executives -- Xu, Guo Ping and Ken Hu -- every six months. It's an interesting and highly unorthodox strategy, and it's far too soon to say whether it will help HTC, which has seen its share price slip 50 percent in 12 months, turn itself around.
HTC is also supposedly in talks with Microsoft, Bloomberg reports, which wants the phone manufacturer to install its Windows Phone operating systems on its Android phones. Microsoft's determination to push Windows, and HTC's need to reclaim its position in the smartphone market could result in a fruitful partnership. HTC has made its own Windows Phone devices in the past though, which didn't prove hugely popular, and the company has exhibited no signs that it will be making more any time soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment