High Tech Computer Corporation - Research Paper Example

HTC CORPORATION Introduction Technology has led to the development of various types of smart phones, laptops and tablets that are manufactured by different companies ranging from Samsung, Nokia, Apple and HTC. All these companies are continuously trying to outdo each other in terms of the best produced gadget when it comes to applications, memory, graphics and fast use of the internet. The high competition in the market has in turn resulted in consumers accessing quality yet affordable phones when and where they require doing so. Over the years, High Tech Computer Corporation (HTC) has built a reputation as a company that is able to produce high quality technological gadgets as demanded by the market. HTC Corporation has been in the industry for well over 5 years now and it has proved itself worthy of continued existence in years to come. The products it offers are of high quality yet they are available at affordable prices for the middle class earners; a population that is very high in the world today. Today, one can rightfully say that the HTC Corporation is the top of the list when it comes to highly innovative companies in the world today. History of HTC Corporation HTC Corporation was founded in 1997 when Cher Mi Wang partnered with HT Cho and Peter Chou. Their main of coming together was to form a company that would be in a position to manufacture phones that would serve as communication gadgets as well as personal assistant to the users (General books, 2010). The project did not kick off as planned and the partners ended up utilizing a lot of capital while incurring losses. The Wang family was by then one of the richest families in Taiwan and their riches came in handy once the partnership went flat broke. They were given the permission to use the wealth to acquire whatever it was that they needed to bring the company back on its feet. Cher Mi Wang invested heavily in the improvement of engineering and design sections of the company as they were more wanting. With the company up and running again, the partners decided to add to their objectives to adapt to the market. They decided that apart from manufacturing the phones that they initially planned to manufacture, they would also produce products for other brands. The new plan resulted in the manufacturing of a mobile computer in 2000 for the Compaq Corporation. HP also hired HTC Corporation to manufacture a mobile computer for them after seen the success of the one produced for Compaq. HTC attracted the attention of big wireless providers such as Vodafone, Orange, Sprint Nextel and Verizon Wireless when it produced the first pocket personal computers (PCs) that operated under the Microsoft operating systems. The HTC Corporation is widely recognized for being the first producers of android smartphones; Microsoft powered smartphones as well as Microsoft 3G phones. Since 2000, the company has being identified with various high tech products in the market that are said to make communication and business easier as is the requirement of the modern world. The company has won many awards for the products it offers to the consumers all over the world. Most recently, the value of HTC Corporation increased tremendously to an extent that it passed that of Nokia. This placed the HTC Corporation the third best smartphone producer in the world after Apple Inc. and Samsung. This position is causing great market loss for HTC products in the US market as most people there prefer Apple and Samsung products. Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threat (SWOT) analysis of HTC For HTC to have being under operation for more than a decade now, its creators must have conducted an effective SWOT analysis. This has helped them to realize how to overcome the weaknesses and threats while at the same time utilizing their strengths and seizing opportunities as they arise (Top of FormFleisher, Craig and Babette, 2003). Taking a closer look at the company, the partnerships that it has formed over the years have served as a major strength and boost to the operations of HTC Corporation. Over the years, the company has identified itself with companies such as the Microsoft, HP and Compaq all of which are large players to the technology in use today. All HTC products are of high quality; both the hardware as well as the software. This has helped to build confidence among consumers as they are always assured of good and lasting products. HTC is a brand that is well renowned in many parts of the world. The company does not incur high promotional costs. Instead, they channel most of their money to improving their already existing products. HTC has a major opportunity of working with Google for the provision of android services for Google’s system. The fact that many people today prefer the use of smartphones is also a good market opportunity for HTC which offers high quality and affordable smartphones. Through effective planning and management, HTC will capture a large percentage of this market both in Asia and outside Asia. Proper planning on the company’s part could also see HTC being the first company to develop the 4G technology to replace the 3G that is quickly wearing out. However, all these opportunities require large amounts of capital for them to be put into place. The close ties between HTC and Microsoft is viewed as a weakness of the HTC Corporation in that it is not innovative enough to establish its own software brand (Fleisher, 2003). The threats that the HTC Corporation faces today are quite many. One very likely threat is the ever changing demand and preferences of consumers about the specifications of technological gadgets today. A product can be in high demand today and no one will want it tomorrow. If the company is not innovative enough to create better brands by the day, it faces a high threat of extinction from the marketer (Fleisher, 2003). Another likely threat is the everyday entrance of other companies into the information technology world. Companies such as Apple and Samsung are today quickly entering into the smartphone production world and emerging to be much better than the HTC Corporation. Even in its own hometown, HTC is been threatened by small and upcoming competitors who are making huge entries to the ODM market. Financial analysis of the HTC Corporation The HTC Corporation is today incurring more expenses than it did about 5 years ago. This is mainly due to the rapid technological changes experienced today that were not in existence back then. These high operational expenses are slowly biting into its profits (Baker & Gary, 2005). Another reason why the corporation is making lesser profits by the year is because it has entirely focused on smartphones and forgotten the people who would like to use HTC products yet they cannot afford them due to their high prices. There is need for HTC Corporation to borrow a leaf from Samsung whose products cater for people across all earning brackets. HTC Corporation has in many years put its efforts in creating a good name in the Chinese market and has forgotten the need to go global for more profits. This is one leading factor as to why many Americans do not recognize the brand and they always go for Apple or Samsung products. HTC will have to incur exceptionally high costs if it is to establish itself in the American market. The corporation will also require a unique promotional campaign to achieve the same. These factors could be the main reasons why HTC is slowly losing its touch in the global market as well as incurring more losses than profits. This has led to the decrease of the net income that the company has being making over the years as indicated below. YEAR 2011 2012 2013 NET INCOME (Millions in Taiwanese dollars) 2105 570 (2937.7) The earnings per share (EPS) of the company also slowly decrease in value over the years. This decrease is to mean that unlike a few years back when one would have to sweat it out to acquire shares in the HTC Corporation, today one does not have to dig very deep into their pockets to do so. YEAR 2010 2011 2012 NET INCOME 1.55 2.44 0.68 It is however important to note that despite this financial challenges, HTC remains a top manufacturer of quality Smartphones in the world today. References Top of Form K, Toly. Htc Droid 4g Survival Guide: Step-by-step User Guide for Droid Inspire, Thunderbolt, and Evo: Getting Started, Downloading Free Ebooks, Using Email, Photos and Videos, and Surfing Web. Boston: MobileReference.com, 2011. Internet resource. Bottom of Form Top of Form Fleisher, Craig S, and Babette E. Bensoussan. Strategic and Competitive Analysis: Methods and Techniques for Analyzing Business Competition. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Prentice Hall, 2003. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Baker, H K, and Gary E. Powell. Understanding Financial Management: A Practical Guide. Oxford: Blackwell Pub, 2005. Internet resource. Bottom of Form Top of Form Enhanced Discovering Computers, Complete 2012: Your Interactive Guide to the Digital World. Course Technology Ptr, 2012. Print. Bottom of Form Top of Form Htc Corporation. General Books, 2010. Print. Bottom of Form Read More