HTC makes official mainland debut
- Source: Global Times
- [08:51 July 28 2010]
- Comments
A customer holds a Dopod handset in a mobile phone store in Shanghai. Photo: Cai Xianmin
By Tang Zhao
Taiwan-based HTC's Chinese mainland brand, Dopod, will continue, despite the HTC brand being officially launched on the mainland in Beijing Tuesday.
At the launch event for the first four HTC-branded handsets to be officially released on the mainland Tuesday, Dennis Chen, CEO of Shanghai-headquartered Dopod, said the two brands would co-exist, China Communication Network reported.
"Dopod and HTC belong to the same group. The two brands will be used to promote products of different orientation from this moment onwards," Chen said.
Prior to Tuesday, all HTC-branded mobiles bought on the Chinese mainland were smuggled.
However, one analyst said that the Dopod brand would be eclipsed by the HTC name.
"I think the Dopod brand will fade from the mainland now that HTC has officially entered the burgeoning 3G market," Xiang Ligang, telecommunications analyst at Cctime. com, told the Global Times Tuesday. He said that Dopod had helped HTC to understand the local market in terms of policies and user behavior.
"2010 is a crucial point in the development of 3G networks on the Chinese mainland. As an experienced manufacturer for so many international telecom carriers, HTC will follow Dopod to be a giant in the local market," Xiang added.
Cao Junbo, chief analyst at market research firm iResearch, told the Global Times Tuesday that many consumers on the mainland are familiar with the HTC brand through smuggled phones.
"If HTC wants to keep the Dopod brand, HTC and Dopod should be used to target different user groups," he added.
HTC, established in 1997, started as a smart phone Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), mainly for major telecom carriers and small cell phone companies, including Dopod.
The company started offering HTC-branded handsets on the Chinese mainland in 2006.
