HTC Corp (宏達電), maker of the first mobile phone that runs on Google Inc’s operating system, plans to begin selling its next Android-equipped handset in the second quarter after sales of the first model exceeded company targets.
The HTC Magic will be among the three or more Android-handset models that the company unveils this year, chief executive officer Peter Chou (周永明) told reporters in Taipei yesterday. Sales of the G1, introduced last year, exceeded the 1 million units that the company had targeted last year, he said.
The phones would compete with the Android-equipped models that Samsung Electronics Co, LG Electronics Inc and Motorola Inc plan to introduce this year to meet rising demand for so-called smartphones that allow users to view videos and documents.
Demand for smartphones with touch screens is rising, bucking the projected decline in global mobile-phone sales this year, estimates by research firm Gartner Inc showed.
HTC, also the world’s largest maker of phones that run on Microsoft Windows, will introduce fewer than 20 handsets this year, including the Android models, Chou said.
The company plans to acquire software-design companies this year to help sales in China double to 1.6 million and gain market share, he said.
Europe is HTC’s biggest market, accounting for about 40 percent of total sales, the US takes up about 30 percent and China 5 percent Chou said.
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