WORD IS: Facebook Enlisting HTC to Build a Phone for Mid-2013

By: Kuljit Grewal  |   July 26th, 2012   |   Business, News, Smartphones, Social Media

According to several sources with intimate knowledge of the goings on, Facebook (FB) has enlisted the help of manufacturer HTC Corp. in order to create a Smartphone. The device is expected to be released in mid-2013 to allow HTC to focus on various other products beforehand.

 

Although a lot of detail remains unclear, namely what exactly does Facebook have in mind in terms of UI and platform, the push makes sense. Facebook, who have now gone public have put themselves in a dilemma that private companies do not experience; appeasing to the mass of shareholders and investment media while also making the best strategic decisions.

 

Facebook, although clearly the largest social network in the world has faced the same issue since going public; how to monetize their mobile site. According to this Bloomberg article, of the $3.15 billion the company earned in 2011, not one cent came from mobile phone ads.

 

This clearly is an issue considering that more than 50% of Facebook’s 900 million surf the site using their mobile devices.

 

The desire to create a phone with deeply integrated Facebook news and features requires high level programmers who understand mobile and Smartphones, which it seems they have. The company employs a bevy of Apple alumni who have worked on iPad and iPhone, having hired them to improve their iOS application.

 

A deeply integrated Facebook phone could open a plethora of marketing and ad opportunities that would aid the company in monetizing their mobile platform. My only real question however  is whether the world really needs a Facebook phone, particularly one that is built by HTC.

 

HTC only accounts for 4.8% of the Smartphone market and Windows phone has done a remarkable job of integrating Facebook, begging the question – would we have to sacrifice performance, apps and features for greater Facebook integration?

 

As is, the only base platform Facebook could realistically start with is Android’s, due to its open source nature as compared to iOS. It will be interesting to see how this develops for Facebook.