HTC shutters doors on South Korea office
In an effort to “streamline operations” after slow growth in certain markets, HTC is closing down their operations in Seoul. The move comes as mobile manufacturers native to South Korea like Samsung and LG have marginalized competition from the Taiwanese company and captured a 90 percent share of the local market. This isn’t the first branch of HTC to see its doors closed recently, with divisions in Brazil and North Carolina also getting the axe. The downsizing also mean an unfortunate loss of jobs for many of the folks working for HTC in South Korea, a result that HTC is not altogether happy with.
HTC is hoping that a reduced device portfolio and focus on better product lines like the One series of phones will help to light a fire under a business which saw massive growth in recent years only to become stagnant as competition in the mobile space heated up. Part of this process apparently involves trimming some of the fat at the corporate level, a move which is understood but that does not come without its own human costs.
[via Engadget]