Can ZTE's mobile phone play overseas marketing?

Guide: ZTE's mobile and NBA cooperation is the largest in the history of its overseas investment, and through with the local well-known NBA cooperation, ZTE's mobile phone aims to further deepen brand awareness.
ZTE Mobile phone to deepen NBA cooperation overseas marketing can play the turn?

How domestic mobile phone in overseas market roots, has become the current fierce competition in the environment of new nuggets. The Chinese handset maker, which has been in the North American market for years, is trying to change the identity of the challenger, pointing to Samsung, following a partnership between ZTE's mobile phone and NBA teams last year.

Today, ZTE's mobile phone signed two NBA teams, Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns, and the NBA's cooperation to further deepen. "From the effect of last year's collaboration with the NBA rockets, ZTE's brand awareness in the U.S. market rose from 1% to 16%, and the market share rose from 4% to 8%." The increase in the share mainly from Samsung, Japan and other mobile phone manufacturers. "Senior vice president of ZTE Communications, Terminal North America CEO Cheng in the interview with Tencent Technology, said.

At present, ZTE's market share in North America ranked fourth, of which, the second-highest prepaid market, a share of nearly 20%, this year's shipments target is 10 million last year on the basis of doubling.

Highly bundled operators

The United States is one of the most competitive market for smartphone manufacturers, and operators occupy a very important position in this market. And the high degree of bundling with operators is the biggest reason why ZTE phones can continue to grow in North America.

Take, for example, the most important American market in North America, according to Cheng, more than 95% of the smartphone in the United States is sold through the carrier channels, users even through large distributors to buy mobile phones, and eventually will be bundled with the carrier package, and ZTE Mobile phone and the United States almost all operators have close cooperation.

ZTE began to invest in the U.S. market in 1998, by 2007, the first mobile phone in the United States, from the phone does not have ZTE's own logo, to the present "ZTE", which is a long history of more than 10 years. Now North America has become ZTE's largest mobile phone market outside China, although in the communications equipment market, ZTE as a Chinese manufacturer can only stand outside the door, but in the mobile phone market, there is nothing to block the pace of ZTE forward.

At present, ZTE Mobile phone basically with all local telecom operators to establish a partnership. such as At&t, Verizon, Sprintt-mobile, MetroPCS, etc. There are 56 different models in the market.

"Cooperation with operators is a long-term accumulation of the process, ZTE mobile phone seized the 2011 to 2012 the United States market opportunities, from the original in accordance with the operator requirements of production has been changed to be based on market user needs to design, because operators have recognized the value of ZTE mobile phones." "Cheng said.

According to Tencent Science and technology, between 2011 and 2012, with the 3G mature and 4G heat, the United States market ushered in a larger smartphone-switching tide, the market capacity of more than 160 million. By this year, more than 90% of the market is already smartphone users, and growth is slowing. For example, U.S. user Switching time has changed from 6-8 months of frenzy to 12-18 months now.

ZTE, which grew up on the prepaid market, says the market is not yet saturated. "Last year, data showed that 1 of the average 4 Americans chose to prepay, and this year the market changes by One-third will opt for a prepaid fee," he said. The line between prepaid and paid is blurred, but capacity is increasing, which is good for ZTE. ”

ZTE's partnership with the NBA is the largest in its overseas investment history, and ZTE's handset aims to deepen its brand awareness by working with a well-known local NBA. In addition to its previous partnership with the Rockets, the partnership with the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns will increase the exposure of the ZTE Brand to a greater extent. As for the NBA cooperation to date, the amount of ZTE mobile phone investment Cheng not disclosed.

Of course, in addition to acting as a partner, ZTE has become more flexible in North America since the overall adjustment in research and development began earlier this year. As early as this year, ZTE dug up the original BlackBerry research and development team, and in Ottawa, Canada to become a mobile phone research and Development center, in Germany, ZTE Research and development team even have from BMW's designers.

ZTE currently has 18 research and development centers in the United States, Canada, France, Sweden and mainland China, and has set up 6 ID design centers in Germany, India, Shanghai, Hong Kong and other countries and regions, and engineers and designers from Germany, South Korea and Canada have become the original power of ZTE's mobile phone.

Where the hell is Newland?

Sailing sails have been raised, where the sail is still plagued by many domestic handset manufacturers.

From the current development of overseas markets, domestic mobile phone to the sea model can be divided into three major categories. One is the acquisition model, such as the acquisition of Alcatel TCL, also rely on the close cooperation with operators, the current TCL mobile phone products sold in Europe, the Americas. In terms of shipments, TCL is already the world's sixth-largest handset market manufacturer.

Similar to the model ready to go to sea another brand of domestic mobile phone is Lenovo. By acquiring Motorola's mobile phone business, Lenovo offered to enter the U.S. market in 2014. Just one months and 2014 years from now, Lenovo's mobile phone is still on the slogan.

Industry analysts told Tencent that the success of smartphones is often short-lived and requires sustained innovation to sustain it. To stay in the U.S. market and succeed, Lenovo also needs to invest heavily in research and development, design, marketing and operator relations.

The second category is ZTE Huawei, which relies on selling equipment, despite the fact that its two companies are struggling in the North American market due to various restrictions, but the handset terminal business has frequently been brilliant. Like ZTE, which has ranked fourth in North America, Huawei handsets have been a big concern in the European market.

The third category is the barefoot exploration of millet, a plus and so on. However, in Cheng's view, the model and other types of models in the U.S. market is afraid to have a way out, because the market's carrier model is entrenched.

Compared to the first two categories, the third category mainly to the electric business channel. As before the millet announced to enter the Indian market, with India's largest electric dealer website Flipkart cooperation to sell millet 3. There is also a mobile phone that takes the form of "inviting purchase mode" like Google (Weibo) glasses. In the outside world, such brands are relatively small in the U.S. market.

As mentioned above, the North American market, the vast majority of smartphones are operators channels, the only 5% is open channels, and the carrier tariffs are bundled, if the results of the electricity trader is obvious, it is clear that the mature market in Europe and America is difficult to have domestic mobile phone growth space.

But demand for smartphones in emerging markets such as India, South-East Asia and Latin America has started to soar, and consumers in the region are planning to replace their traditional handsets with smartphones. Gionee and Vivo are investing more in this area. such as Vivo brand stores this year in Thailand, Burma, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian markets officially opened.

In addition, the domestic phone shortage of patents are still karez, in addition to the Chinese Cool Alliance, such as the old handset manufacturers more than the patent, the rest of the manufacturers are also limited to the production of raw materials assembly level.

Data show that 2013, ZTE PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty Patent Cooperation Agreement) application volume of the world ranked second, China ranked first, the possession of more than 90% of patents for a high degree of stability and technical quality of invention patents, comprehensive coverage of English, French, German, The United States and other major developed and emerging developing countries. And in the intelligent terminal, ZTE patents more than 8,000, in the 4G LTE basic patents, ZTE accounted for the number of patents 13% of the world, is the first domestic brand.

In a word, for the domestic mobile phone brands ready to go to sea, the future of the road is not easier than at home.