Taiwan’s HTC, which has admitted to running both hot and cold on South Africa in recent years, has used the launch of its new flagship smartphone, the One M9, to reaffirm its commitment to the local market and to vow that it won’t repeat the mistakes it’s made in the past.
HTC announced that the One M9 will go on sale through South African operators on 1 June, with preorders available from as early as next month. The M9, which was unveiled at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in March, is the successor the well-received One M8.
Neeraj Seth, who heads marketing for HTC in the Middle East and Africa, says South Africa is one of the core key markets for the company. “We are here to put the right infrastructure in place.”
HTC has come under fire in the past for not offering sufficient after-sales service, including maintenance options for consumers with faulty or broken handsets.
Seth admits that HTC has made missteps in the past with respect to the South African market, but says its research shows this hasn’t had a negative impact on perceptions of the brand among consumers.
“In research we have done in South Africa, HTC is one of the few brands consumers really love,” he says.
The company first entered the market with distributor Leaf International more than a decade ago, before coming in directly by opening its own offices in 2012. It then pulled out again, appointing Ingram Micro as its local distributor.
It terminated its relationship with Ingram Micro last year, opting for a more direct presence in the country and working with a fulfilment partner, Brightstar, an international specialised wireless technology distributor headquartered in Miami in the US.
Seth says HTC spent 2014 “being a little low key, not going much above the line, but interacting with media and bloggers”. It invested in infrastructure and appointed a new PR agency.
“We want to ensure South Africa is a success story. We don’t want to repeat mistakes that happened in the past.
“Today, we sit in a position where we have been consistent in delivering against the requirements that consumers have. It’s a very different discussion we are having now compared to a year ago, when we were remedying historical issues.” — © 2015 NewsCentral Media
