In interview with the Financial Times, HTC CEO
Peter Chou and Chairwoman Cher Wang offered some fresh insight into the
troubled smartphone maker's future plans — including hints at entries into new
product categories.
For future products,
the HTC CEO and Chairwoman hinted at a return to the tablet market, as well as a
possible entry into the world of wearables. Chou reportedly mentions that
HTC worked on a smart-watch type device with Microsoft "several years
ago," but dismissed the current crop of wearables: “It has to meet a
need, otherwise if it’s just a gimmick or concept, it’s not for people’s day-to-day
lives. That is an opportunity for us.” Nevertheless, he describes wearables as
"a critical segment for us," adding “it matches what we do today
as a mobile experience overall. That is one area we are excited about.”
Wang is quoted as saying, “when the [HTC] tablet comes
out it will be something nice and disruptive.” But with strong competition from
many of the major consumer electronics brands, HTC, as a smaller player with
fewer marketing dollars to spend, could find its tablets facing issues similar
to those affecting its smartphone business.
Chou, however, shares a more optimistic view: “The
market is really big. HTC is a small company. For us to stay competitive and
survive is not a huge problem.” He adds that there's a good chance of the
company winning a 15 percent share of the high-end market, and a five percent
overall smartphone market share — a figure he describes as a “pretty good
number for us.”
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