Poor HTC, it just canโt catch a break at the moment. Even though it has been estimated five million HTC One phones have been shipped since its launch earlier this year, the news is overshadowed by reports of executives leaving the company and now, the cancellation of the HTC Firstโs UK launch.
The First is the one and so far only Facebook phone, i.e. one which comes with the Facebook Home launcher pre-installed from the factory, and therefore a device which has been talked about for years. It should have been a success, but instead, its lowly spec failed to capture buyerโs hearts and soon after a drastic price cut by AT&T, rumors of its impending demise quickly followed.
HTC was planning to release the First in the UK exclusively through the EE network this summer, but a report by MobileNews.com this morning suggested the launch had been cancelled, and dismal sales in the U.S. were partly to blame. According to the siteโs source, the HTC First will never go on sale in the UK, and, โFacebook has taken the decision not to give it a more widespread release.โ Notice it says it was Facebookโs decision, and not HTCโs or EEโs.
EE confirms the decision
Following the report, EE provided an official statement to Engadget, confirming the news. It said, โFollowing customer feedback, Facebook has decided to focus on adding new customization features to Facebook Home over the coming months … they have recommended holding off launching the HTC First in the UK.โ EE says it will be in contact with those who may have pre-ordered a First shortly.
Whatโs interesting here is that itโs Facebook which has canned the launch, while it spends time, โworking to make a better Facebook Home experience.โ While HTC is the one suffering, having put in the time and effort to create a phone which wonโt be sold, the back story here is Facebook may not be pulling in the amount of users it expected with Home, and is feeling the pressure to tweak the app. Having a phone go on sale with a version of Home it has lost faith in wouldnโt help its reputation. While the HTC First comes with Home as standard, it’s also ready to download as an app through Google Play, and Facebook has recently added the Galaxy S4, Xperia ZL and the HTC One to its list of compatible devices, such as the Galaxy S3.
At the time of writing the HTC First is still available with AT&T both online and in stores, but weโd imagine once the current stock allocation has been depleted, it may not come back.
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