After reporting a further decline in revenue and a reduction in its operating profit, Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer HTC has announced something that might lift up the company’s spirits. Though it doesn’t sound like much, it shows the changing strategies at the company and its clear intent to fight back from the setback it suffered in the market as a result of competing with the likes of Apple and Samsung. HTC seems to be following Apple’s footsteps after the Cupertino giant began hiring more component providers and reduced its dependency on Samsung alone. HTC too is going to rely less heavily on Samsung to reduce the risk of falling short of supply.
It is rumored that HTC is ordering CMOS sensors for cameras in its smartphones from OmniVision and Sony in place of Samsung and is shifting its AMOLED display orders to AU Optronics. Sources say that HTC is still going to rely on AMOLED displays from Samsung but in lesser volumes. Currently, Samsung is one of the world’s largest electronic component suppliers and has had a stupendous last couple of quarters due to its expanding smartphones and components segment.
The speculation about HTC comes in the wake of Apple’s confirmation that it has dropped Samsung as the supplier of its NAND and DRAM components for the new iPhone 5. It was later reported that Apple would continue to depend on Samsung for part of its memory module demands but it would divert a major part to other suppliers such as Toshiba. Sources say that this is purely because Apple wants to diversify its suppliers and has nothing to do with the ongoing patent battle between the two giants.
HTC has not made any official statement about its policy for future procurements but it all seems to be part of a revamping going on in the company to save itself. After a near 50% reduction in revenue over the last year or so, the top executives seem to be looking at all possible avenues to bring the company back in the reckoning in the smartphone industry. Perhaps the new high end Windows Phone 8 devices and future Android versions of its phones will revive the company. Recent releases from HTC were well received by critics and analysts but failed to create a strong support among customers, and sales continue to be low.
