Bad news for HTC yesterday, as the Taiwanese smartphone manufacturer announced the release of its new upcoming flagship device, the HTC One, is being delayed due to component shortages. Apparently, the One, scheduled for release this month, may not be available until April.
The components causing the delay include the phone's sleek metal casing and parts of its camera.
This is very bad news for the company for a few reasons. First and foremost, HTC can't get the components it needs in time because it is no longer considered a tier-one customer by its suppliers, meaning companies that already have the advantage in terms of sales and revenue, like Samsung, are given precedence.
As HTC has been experiencing slow sales over the past couple years — despite the glowing critical response to its One line of devices, particularly last year's flagship, the HTC One X — this could lead to even worse times for the company. In fact, the HTC One is generally regarded as HTC's last chance to regain market share in the smartphone market and revive its sales, which fell 41 percent in the final quarter of 2012.
With rumors that HTC CEO Peter Chou might step down if the One doesn't succeed, there’s a lot riding on the device.
Meanwhile, the delay will mean the One will have to compete directly with Samsung's new flagship, the Galaxy S 4, to be released in April. The HTC One, formerly the M7, sports specs to rival that of the Galaxy S 4, with a 4.7-inch display and premium aluminum chassis that many prefer to Samsung's use of plastic in its devices.
But the company just doesn't have the brand power to match its Korean rival.
Furthermore, HTC has also been facing issues with employee turnover lately as rivals including Acer, Asus and Huawei have been hiring at greater rates than usual.
Edited by
Braden Becker 
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