Episode 45: HTC, Google and the Future of Mobile
Acquired - A podcast by Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal
Join the Acquired Limited Partner program! https://kimberlite.fm/acquired/ (works best on mobile)
Acquired is back and live on the scene! After months of speculation, Google announces today their acquisition (err, "Cooperation Agreement”) of a large portion of HTC’s hardware division. What does this mean for the future of mobile? Can Google transform itself into a vertically integrated device company and compete directly with Apple? Most importantly, when will we see more Beats Android handsets??? (We hope never)
Topics Covered Include:
- The origins of HTC as a Taiwanese OEM, dating back to the Compaq iPAQ and Palm Treo 650!
- HTC’s long history with Google, starting as the manufacturer of the first Android phone, the HTC Dream / T-Mobile G1
- HTC’s ownership of Beats, for a hot minute
- Google’s own winding history in hardware, with its Motorola acquisition in 2011 and divestiture in 2014
- Google & HTC’s joint work on the Pixel smartphones in 2016
- And much analysis and speculation on what this means for Google, Apple, Samsung, vertical vs horizontal business models and more!
The Carve Out:
- Ben: Odesza’s new album A Moment Apart
- David: Bruce Springsteen on Fresh Air
Sponsor:
- Thanks to Perkins Coie, Counsel to Great Companies, for sponsoring this podcast. You can get in touch with Jeff Beuche, who you heard at the beginning of this podcast, here.
