A curious little rumor has been doing the rounds online, claiming that HTC has decided to move away from the Windows Phone platform and instead increase its focus on Android.
The infamous Digitimes is reporting (citing unnamed sources) that the Taiwanese company is contemplating dumping Microsoft’s mobile platform due to a couple of factors — low sales volume and intensely strong competition from Nokia.
This new rumor is a total 180 from earlier reports that suggested that the mobile phone maker is developing a new variant of HTC One that is powered by of Windows Phone.
HTC, as you may well be aware, has been struggling for quite some time now. The company is battling decreasing market share and lower than expected sales of its devices, which has led to quarterly losses. The sheer ascent of Samsung with its Android devices has left HTC fighting for survival.
A few severe mistakes coupled by listless movements at crucial times have resulted in the Taiwanese company losing its dominant position that it enjoyed a few years back.
The reality is that HTC it has been sandwiched — one on side by Samsung that has become the Android leader with its Galaxy lineup, and on the other by Nokia and its Lumia devices and the custom software and services the Finnish giant offers on its smartphones.
It is trying to make a comeback on the Android front, but whether the company decides to forego the Windows Phone platform to shift resources towards its quest will be evident in the near future. This is not an easy quest, after all.
Dethroning Samsung is perhaps the toughest of ordeal in the mobile realm.
Even though HTC is currently on the number two spot in the Windows Phone, it is a country mile behind Nokia in terms of market share. But Microsoft’s mobile platform is rapidly growing and ditching it outright at this time could potentially seal HTC’s fate.
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Good to know, I was considering a cheap Windows 8 phone to explore the platform. I’ve had a few bad experiences with HTC abandoning upgrades to Android phones less than a year after release – knowing they’re ambivalent about the Windows platform will steer me away from their products.
Yep, I agree with you. I currently have a HTC Android phone and they really suck with their upgrades. I plan on getting a Windows 8 phone because I’m deeper into that environment than Android, and forget iOS … I’m not in their sphere at all, nor will I ever be. Apple just costs too much for my budget.
Yes, I’ve just bought a Nokia Lumia 820 sim free unlocked on Tesco Direct for £179 after £20 online discount voucher! Who knows it may soon replace my Android HTC One X+ (still running version 4.1.2) as my main handset since it’s LTE enabled.
I guess I won’t be getting any HTC Phones. My first smart phone was from Samsung. I got it because Motorola and Samsung were the only feature phones I liked. I used to hear a lot about HTC back then, and I really was looking at getting one. I will be staying away from HTC after hearing other’s account of them. I’m had both WM6.x and WP7.x phones and never had a problem with them. I have no reason to not give the platform a chance or look into any vendor who is not giving it a chance.
Makes a lot of sense considering how they’re one of the top sellers of Andriod phones(Note the Sarcasm). Increased competition from Nokia? Maybe if they’d dived head first into Windows Phone as Nokia did instead of just playing with it, they’d be in better shape now. They need to have a long-term strategy because they’re not going to be getting anywhere close to Samsung in the Andriod market overnight or anytime soon.
Exactly, Ray C. If I were a phone maker, I’d go full-throttle with both Android and Windows Phone. Call it hedging your bets, but what else makes economic sense in this market? But dabbling here and there is not the same thing, so why should this news be surprising? And why don’t they have a tablet, or do they? Meh!
HTC is pretty indolent in the Windows Phone game, that’s for sure! I’m not saying they should be as active as Nokia, but some regular community contact, a bit of involvement could go a long way.
This is rumor for now, yes, but one that holds a bit of weight keeping in mind the company’s performance on the WP8 front. Not necessarily in terms of sales, but it almost seems like someone is forcing them, pressurizing them to create Windows Phone 8 devices, so half-hearted it is.
With news that other vendors are planning to jump in and develop Windows Phone 8, news of HTC bowing out is just, well, what can one say, outright dismal. Will leave more for Nokia, I guess. The platform is showing no signs of stopping, that much is a given.
By the end of next year, the Windows Phone ecosystem could be cutting into both iOS and Android.
HTC’s loss will be someone else’s gain. It makes absolutely no sense when both Sprint and Verizon recently starting offering deals with Windows Phones as the handset. This quick, rash decision might be a signal of what is going wrong over at HTC. Moat analyst full expect WP to get close to or catch iOs.
HTC is pretty indolent in the Windows Phone game, that’s for sure! I’m not saying they should be as active as Nokia, but some regular community contact, a bit of involvement could go a long way.
This is rumor for now, yes, but one that holds a bit of weight keeping in mind the company’s performance on the WP8 front. Not necessarily in terms of sales, but it almost seems like someone is forcing them, pressurizing them to create Windows Phone 8 devices, so half-hearted it is.
With news that other vendors are planning to jump in and develop Windows Phone 8, news of HTC bowing out is just, well, what can one say, outright dismal. Will leave more for Nokia, I guess. The platform is showing no signs of stopping, that much is a given.
By the end of next year, the Windows Phone ecosystem could be cutting into both iOS and Android.