As we all know, Apple, HTC, Samsung and Motorola are locked in a furious battle for U.S. market share. According to the Wall Street journal it appears that the Chinese company, ZTE, will be throwing their hat into the ring as well with a new line of high-end smartphones that look to debut sometime next year.
It's a surprise move considering they mostly sell budget devices and broadband modems. ZTE America President Lixin Cheng is optimistic about pushing forward into the U.S. market. He was quoted to say:
“By 2015, we expect the U.S. to be the largest market for handsets for ZTE. Next year, we’re going to launch LTE and high-tier phones in the U.S.”
Cheng did not go into specifics, however. He did mention that new devices will be “more affordable” than the iPhone. Even with this move the question that is begging to be asked is how will they be received by the U.S. populace? They usually prefer big name brands as it gives them comfort. Big name brands are usually known for delivering better devices than smaller brands. Cheng continued to be optimistic by saying that sales of ZTE devices in the U.S. in the third quarter were up 157% year-to-year.
While this venture is far from smooth sailing, there is no saying that ZTE can't live up to their goals. HTC, the Taiwanese company went from zero-to-hero becoming the top device vendor in the U.S., in just a couple of years. While the market is pretty established now, there is no saying that ZTE couldn't pull off the same thing. It's hard to say right now, but if they hit the market with power packed devices, they certainly will have a better chance.
[via the Wall Street Journal by TechCrunch]
