HTC Looks to Ship 8.5 Million Handsets in Fourth Quarter

Just a week before announcing its third quarter financial report, smartphone maker HTC (News - Alert) has predicted that it will ship 8.5 million handsets in the final quarter of 2010, according to Digitimes.

While the target is rather aggressive, many analysts think that it is feasible for the Taiwan-based technology provider to grab a bigger piece of the wireless market share. HTC just released two Android-based smart phones and four new handsets powered by the recently launched Windows Phone (News - Alert) 7 operating system. Much of the company's fourth quarter success may rely on the popularity of the new Windows OS, which has received generally strong reviews.

In the third quarter of 2010, HTC shipped around 7 million handsets, despite suffering from a significant supply shortage. If the company is able to reach its goal of shipping 8.5 million units in the final quarter of the year, it would become the third biggest mobile phone manufacturer in the world. HTC would still have quite a ways to go to catch Nokia (News - Alert) and Apple though, which shipped 26.5 million and 14.1 million handsets last quarter.

HTC is expected to unveil its third quarter earnings and its forecast for 4Q on Oct. 29. Industry sources told Digitimes that they expect the company to predict a 20 percent revenue growth for the fourth quarter. That kind of expansion would give HTC a 10 percent market share and a projected revenue of nearly $3 billion.

A large portion of HTC's success can be attributed to the company's early adoption of Google's Android (News - Alert) operating system, which is quickly catching up to Apple's OS as the most popular platform in the U.S, the New York Times reports. Android smartphone sales increased by 886 percent over the last 12 months, according to a recent Nielsen Company survey.

If Windows Phone 7 is even half as popular as the Android platform, HTC is sure to reach its target.

Beecher Tuttle is a TMCnet contributor. He has extensive experience writing and editing for print publications and online news websites. He has specialized in a variety of industries, including health care technology, politics and education. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Tammy Wolf