X
Tech

HTC's quarterly profits plunge again, what can they do to turn things around?

HTC makes fantastic hardware, often better than Samsung and Apple, yet they can't seem to get that one device across all carriers or attract the consumer enough to compete with Samung in the Android market. With another quarter of falling profits, what can HTC do to regain the momentum they had with the G1?
Written by Matthew Miller, Contributing Writer
HTC's quarterly profits plunge again, what can they do to turn things around?

I was a bit depressed on the train this morning after reading about HTC's 2nd quarter financial report where profits plunged nearly 60 percent from the same quarter in 2011. I have always found HTC's hardware to be better than Samsung's products, including the current HTC One X when compared to the Samsung Galaxy S III. However, Samsung is apparently the darling of the carrier so without a launch on all major carriers HTC doesn't have much of a chance to compete for the top Android spot.

We have seen HTC's disappointing financial results since last fall and the hope was that the new HTC One line would show they are focused and working to regain market share. While the One S and One X are fantastic products, there is no One phone across carriers to carry the HTC flag and a consistent message. While the current quarterly report shows more falling profits, last quarter showed a 70 percent fall too, the good news is that revenue was still at $3.04 billion and HTC isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

HTC made the first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1, and helped generate excitement for the Android platform in 2008 as people looked for a competitor to the successful new iPhone. They have had successful Android products since 2008 for a few years there were too many devices with a shotgun strategy. Google has significantly improved the Android UI and I don't think consumers are seeing much benefit from HTC Sense, which is a key part of HTC devices. People are also much more savvy about their phones today and the lack of updates to new devices is starting to be known by people other than tech enthusiasts.

I haven't worked for a mobile phone company and am not sure what HTC should do to regain market share. I think the hardware is fantastic, but they really need to get carriers on board with a consistent message. Verizon doesn't even have an HTC One variant and that has to hurt HTC. Maybe Windows Phone 8 will help, but since past HTC Windows Phones appeared to simply be standard black slabs taken from their existing Android phone lineup with a new OS inside there has to be more done to innovate or at least tell the story to the public about their products. Many of the things people talk about in Samsung's latest GS III are gimmicky and likely never used beyond the first few days where people try to do what they see in commercials. However, it is generating conversations around their products and the GS III is a hit.

What do you think HTC should do to turn things around? Can they regain market share and compete with Samsung again?

Editorial standards