“Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp posted a first-quarter loss that was wider than analyst estimates, after ineffective marketing resulted in weak sales of its former flagship model,” Michael Gold reports for Reuters.
“The HTC One spent its year at the top of the product line receiving rave reviews but was undermined by advertising widely criticised as confusing, sending the company’s market share into free fall,” Gold reports. “HTC was once a firm third to Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, selling 10 percent of smartphones globally two years ago, but it ended 2013 with a market share of just 2 percent, showed data from researcher Strategy Analytics.”
“The company started 2014 by booking a net loss of T$1.88 billion ($62.06 million) for January-March. That compared with a mean loss of T$1.59 billion estimated by 18 analysts polled by Reuters, and profit of T$85 million logged a year earlier,” Gold reports. “To distinguish itself to trend-conscious consumers, HTC must learn from Apple, whose innovative brand image and marketing strategy has won plaudits, said Taipei-based brand consultant Mark Stocker. ‘Mimic them, but figure out what your brand stands for,’ said Stocker. ‘If Apple is Mercedes Benz, try to make yourself BMW.'”
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MacDailyNews Take:
The [iPhone] design is quite weak; it’s very, very basic… [HTC has] a huge advantage. – HTC CEO Peter Chou, September, 2007