HTC Corp (宏達電), the world’s No. 5 smartphone brand, took the top spot in the ranking of Taiwan’s top 20 global brands, with brand value nearly double that of second-place Acer (宏碁).
HTC’s brand value was US$3.61 billion, compared with Acer’s US$1.94 billion and No. 3 Asustek Computer’s (華碩) US$1.64 billion, according to the annual survey commissioned by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA, 外貿協會) and Chinese-language Business Next magazine, and conducted by brand consultancy firm Interbrand.
The brand value of the top three firms last year was: Acer, US$1.4 billion; HTC, US$1.37 billion; and Asustek, US$1.29 billion.
“I was surprised by our brand value [this year],” HTC chief executive Peter Chou (周永明) said in a speech after accepting the award. “Taiwanese companies should find their own values and should not believe that successful branding is impossible. The outcome could go beyond your expectations.”
HTC used to be a contract phone maker for companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co and Dell, but it entered the brand business five years ago and is now ranked No. 5, behind archrivals Apple, Samsung Electronics, Nokia Oyj and Research In Motion.
Chou reportedly ditched HTC’s global launch in New York for its latest “Rhyme” smartphone on Tuesday to be present for yesterday’s award ceremony.
“Engagement in the brand business is a Herculean task, and it is time and money consuming … We aim to make HTC a global premium brand to compete with the best of the best in the industry,” he said.
This year was the first time in the awards’ nine-year history that catering and financial firms made it to the finalists’ list, TAITRA said.
The award adopted an identification standard created by Interbrand, which releases annual rankings for the world’s 100 best global brands, including Coca Cola Co, Microsoft Corp and Google.
New entrants to Taiwan’s top 20 list this year were Gourmet Master Co (美食達人), the operator of the popular 85°C (85度C) bakery and coffee chain, at No. 11; Delta Electronics Inc (台達電), the world’s largest switching power supplier, at No. 17; and KGI Securities Co (凱基證券) at No. 20.
TAITRA said total brand value of the top 20 climbed 40 percent from last year to US$13.1 billion.
According to Stuart Green, chief Asia-Pacific executive of Interbrand, Taiwan stands a good chance of seeing its leading brand — HTC — make it onto the world’s 100 best global brands survey, which is due out on Oct. 4.
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