The rumor is that Panasonic is looking to exit the smartphone business and is holding talks with HTC and TSMC as we speak. According to Japanese paper Sankei Shimbun, these two are likely buyers no matter how awkward that sounds to the rest of us (who follow the mobile industry).
HTC on its end is having tough time selling enough of its own devices and we’re really not sure what would they do with yet another brand (and production facilities that come with it). Sure enough, it could use Panasonic’s name to gain some market share in Japan, but I don’t think that’s enough to put HTC back to the profitability track.
As for TSMC, the world’s biggest contract semiconductor foundry should have better things to do, though it may want to diversify its portfolio. In that sense, acquiring the Panasonic name (presuming it’s part of the deal) for smartphones could help the company get a foothold in the market. They will still have to deal with distribution which is everything but easy task…
So what do we make of this? Not much. If Panasonic does want to exit the smartphone business, they should find different buyers. Or so we think. What do you say?
[Via: Unwired View]