Can HTC survive as the anti-Apple?

commentary HTC has been riding Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 4G devices in the US, but the secret sauce may be its plan to do the opposite of Apple.

That's the gist of a Bloomberg story on HTC:

HTC has become the top seller of smartphones in the US with a strategy that's precisely the opposite of Apple's. Where Apple is secretive, HTC is open. Where Apple is exclusive, HTC works with all carriers. Where Apple is proprietary, HTC is collaborative. Where Apple customises for no one, HTC customises for everyone. It's the anti-Apple and, so far, it has worked.

Will HTC's approach work going forward? The story raises the question about HTC's success going forward. In the end, the question is whether HTC can continue to work the design and carrier support angle versus its rivals. Keep in mind that Apple isn't the only concern for HTC. Samsung and Motorola Mobility are also vying for Android share against HTC.

A big concern to ponder now is that Apple is already dinging HTC's fourth quarter. HTC CFO Winston Yung said on the company's earnings call that he's confident about the line-up, but iPhone is an issue. Yung said:

We are having a very special fourth quarter here. The products launched in fourth quarter is — number of products is unprecedented. Especially we have for the first time, I think the iPhone launching in the fourth quarter. And customers have been waiting for 16 months for the iPhone. There is a lot of pent-up demand and for this and other reasons the iPhone from what we have read is receiving very good demand at the beginning of its launch.

Via ZDNet US