HTC sales drop 30 per cent in November

TAIWANESE SMARTHONE VENDOR HTC has seen its sales fall by 30 per cent in the month of November, ending a streak of strong growth for the company.

HTC revealed that consolidated sales had fallen from T$44.11bn in October to just T$30.94bn in November, according to Reuters. The drop is not as bad when compared with the same month last year, when HTC brought in T$38.48bn, but it's still a significant decline.

The paltry figures follow an HTC announcement at the end of last month that predicted the company would have no growth for the fourth quarter, revised down from previous expectations of double-digit growth. This is particularly bad considering the traditionally strong sales companies can expect over the Christmas shopping season.

HTC capitalised on the booming smartphone market in 2010 and early 2011, which resulted in strong quarterly growth and a three times increase in share value. It has failed to continue this trend, however, as more companies entered the smartphone arena and began to eat away at HTC's market share.

This might be good news for HTC's rivals, including Apple and Samsung, but it could also signal an overall decline in interest in smartphones. The kind of growth we saw over the last two years was unlikely to last forever. Companies will need to come up with new and better products or risk becoming irrelevant in the coming months and years.

HTC is also awaiting the results of a US Federal Trade Commission ruling sought by rival Apple, which could have a further negative impact on HTC's finances. That decision should be announced next week. µ