HTC Cuts 25% of it’s Staff Amidst Capitulation to Apple, Samsung

Published on October 25, 2018

HTC, the consumer electronics company based out of Taiwan, announced over the summer that it would be laying off 1500 employees by the end of September. The company has been dealing with dismal sales numbers in recent years as companies like Apple and Samsung have taken over the global market for mobile phones. The company primarily creates mobile phones for the global consumer market.

Company-wide Cut Backs

HTC, though innovative, cannot keep up with the competition that arises from other global tech manufacturing companies. At one point the company sold as many as one in ten smartphones in the consumer sphere, but those numbers are no longer true. The company employs around 6,400 people globally. HTC announced over the summer that it would be laying off 1,500 employees, which is about 25% of the workforce, from its Taiwan factories.

The Taiwanese phone manufacturer announced earlier this year that it soon planned on releasing the first ever smartphone that uses blockchain technology. So far, no smartphone company has released—or even attempted to create—a handheld phone that utilized blockchain technology at its core. The HTC Exodus will be the first phone of its kind when it sees its release this month.

The HTC Exodus will be the first phone of its kind—a fully functional smartphone with the ability to leverage blockchain technology. Tech blogs around the world have both praised the move as brave and innovative yet risky. The phone will support blockchain technologies like Bitcoin and Etherium as well as other technologies that don’t focus primarily on cryptocurrencies.

HTC Increases Prices

The HTC Exodus could potentially retail for more than the iPhone X did in its initial launch. It’s also unclear whether or not consumer demand warrants this type of product quite yet. Additionally, with any kind of tech—being the first of its kind is a bad thing, as more often than not it ends up being the guinea pig for bugs and issues.

Analysts have determined that the HTC layoffs have been, in part, to keep up with the financial demand of their new technology. The company’s loss in profit combined with its growing expenses have meant that they need to downsize in order to save money. The first round of layoffs happened last year when HTC got rid of some of its US-based employees. The purchase from Google also saw over 1,000 employees shift companies.

HTC will be unveiling the Exodus, the world’s first smartphone to utilize blockchain technology in its core, this week. The reveal will happen on October 23 and the phone is estimated to retail for around $1,000.

Julia Sachs is a former Managing Editor at Grit Daily. She covers technology, social media and disinformation. She is based in Utah and before the pandemic she liked to travel.

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