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HTC has suffered a 90 per cent fall in profits after the firm released its fourth quarter earnings results.
The Taiwanese phone maker revealed its 2012 Q4 net profits of T$1bn (£21m), which are significantly lower than the T$11bn the firm generated in the previous year.
HTC has previously one of the most dominant names in the smartphone market, but it’s no secret that the firm has long taken a beating from rival firms Apple and Samsung.
2012 saw both of these firms release their newest flagship devices – the iPhone 5 and Samsung Galaxy S3 respectively – but HTC failed to release a device of their own capable of competing in the market.
Whilst failing to capitalise last year, HTC is set to release a new device this year, but will face strict competition from Apple and Samsung’s annual updates, whilst BlackBerry recently unveiled its newest devices running the new BB10 operating system.
Birdy Lu, analyst at Daiwa Capital Markets, told the BBC: "The first three months of this year will be better than the fourth quarter [of 2012], which was really bad, but HTC’s earnings might not have bottomed [out] in 2012 if its flagship M7 sales disappoint this year."
"The new phone could have a first-mover advantage for one or two months before Samsung launches its Galaxy S4 in April, but in the long run, it’s difficult to beat Samsung’s phones."
