HTC’s Chou blames marketing decisions for bad 2012, ready to turn things around
Financially, 2012 wasn’t the best year on record for HTC. While the finger could be pointed in multiple directions, CEO Peter Chou told The Wall Street Journal that he believes misguided marketing was the driving factor behind the downturn in profits. He admitted that HTC did not put enough resources into marketing efforts, an area where competitors easily bested the Taiwan-based smartphone maker.
But it’s arguable that competitors didn’t best HTC when it came to actual devices. While sales slumped, HTC managed to produce a lineup featuring some of their best devices of all time, phones like the HTC One X and Droid DNA. And Chou knows the trend will need to continue. Cash-strapped HTC will focus on “unique products” in order to establish public demand for their products.
A licensing agreement with Apple should help HTC in 2013. President of HTC China Ray Yam recently said the deal would help bolster innovation. But he also mentioned, as Chou did, that HTC plans to revamp their marketing efforts in the new year and hopefully right the ship before it sinks any deeper.
[via Engadget]