Smartphone maker HTC Corp (宏達電) expects its shipments in Taiwan to grow by at least 10 percent this quarter from last quarter on the back of the launches of its One M9 flagship smartphone and the less expensive One E9 Plus, a company executive said yesterday.
“Our shipments topped Taiwan’s market last quarter and we expect this quarter will definitely be better, because of the two new models,” HTC North Asia president Jack Tong (董俊良) said on the sideline of an One E9 Plus launch event, citing a report by market researcher GfK Group.
Tong declined to disclose the company’s total shipments in Taiwan last quarter.
According to GfK’s data, HTC smartphones enjoyed a 21.1 percent market share in Taiwan last month, while Apple Inc’s iPhones secured a 19.8 percent share.
A total of 694,000 smartphones were sold in Taiwan last month, up 16.83 percent from the previous year, according to GfK.
HTC’s handsets secured four spots on the list of the top 10 smartphones in Taiwan last month, GfK said.
Tong said the impressive performance last month was driven by strong sales of HTC’s mid-tier Desire series, noting that the company expects the growth momentum of mid-tier products to extend through this quarter.
Given the growing demand for large-screen smartphones, Tong said that the company has high hopes for its One E9 Plus, because it is HTC’s first 5.5-inch smartphone.
The One E9 Plus is priced at NT$15,900 and the One M9 sells for NT$21,900.
Tong said the company is not worried about the launch of One E9 Plus eroding M9 sales, because the two smartphones are expected to attract buyers seeking different display sizes.
“On the contrary, we believe the revenue contribution from mid to high-priced smartphones will grow this quarter, thanks to the One M9 and One E9 Plus,” Tong said.
HTC shares rose 2.69 percent to NT$133.5 in Taipei trading yesterday, while the TAIEX gained 1.18 percent.
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