HTC’s second-quarter net profit dropped 58 percent year on year, the company reported Friday, a sign that its newest smartphones are not doing as well as it hoped.
The Taiwanese smartphone maker made net profit of NT$7.4 billion (US$248 million) in the second quarter, down from NT$17.5 billion a year earlier. HTC’s revenue for the quarter was also down, by 27 percent year on year, at NT$91 billion.
The company has reported net profit declines for three straight quarters, brought on by increased competition from Samsung and Apple.
HTC, however, had expected to see its second-quarter earnings stabilise at last year’s level with the introduction of its new HTC One series of smartphones. The company had previously lacked a definitive flagship device, which hurt its competitive edge, according to research firms.
But in June, HTC revised its revenue forecast, bringing it down from NT$105 billion to NT$91 billion. The company attributed this to lower anticipated sales in Europe, along with delayed shipments of smartphones to the U.S., the result of its patent battles with Apple.
