To win in the smart world

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Smartphones and tablets, especially Android-enabled smartphones, are ushering in a
new era of mobile devices. How will customers react to these devices, and how
Huawei Device should take advantage of this growth trend? David Kerr, Vice
President, Global Wireless Practice, Strategy Analytics, shares his insights in this
interview with WinWin.

WinWin: Consumers have so many choices when it comes to purchasing smartphones

and tablets. They have to choose not just between different designs and features but
also the different operating systems. What do you think are the most critical factors
that would sway a consumer’s purchasing decision?

Kerr: The most critical factors that decide are how you are going to use the device.
There are so many features and technologies, but the customer must decide what it is
that he would use it for every day. So, to decide what the ideal product is, whether it
is optimized for video or gaming, the customer needs to look at it and say, “Within
my lifestyle, what do I want? Is brand the most critical thing, or it’s really the
performance that I get and the value for money?” So there are tradeoffs in every
product.

Some customers want the maximum performance; they want the fastest, best,
brightest display. Others want to simply be able to casually consume content. With
different requirements, they need to consider the technology as well as durability and
design.

WinWin: Global demand for smartphones seems poised to grow exponentially in the
next five years. How well-placed is Huawei to take advantage of this growth in
demand?

Kerr: Huawei is in an excellent position because it has got great experience in

working with operators in those channels. Also, fundamentally, Huawei’s global
presence and its knowledge of local markets and local customization are very, very
important. Technologically, Huawei has mature technologies and has access to all the
necessary components. It has proven itself both in China and Asia as well as in
Western markets. So the signals are all positive for Huawei, moving forward.

WinWin: In your opinion, how can Huawei differentiate itself from the slew of other
device manufacturers, particularly those making Android devices, in the market?

Kerr: I think the first thing I would say is how not to. That would be adding a lot of
features that very few customers are going to use. I would suggest simplicity of use,
so the real differentiation of Android will really come in terms of the user interface.
You should provide a similar-looking series across your tablet products, your home
products, and your mobile products - we’ve seen some interesting examples of the 3D
user interface. I would also suggest that Huawei should continue to invest in strategic
technologies, whether that is looking at TV technologies, or whether it is focusing on
voice technologies - high definition voice. Those are areas where you can differentiate
from other vendors.

WinWin: Which of Huawei’s device products do you believe to have the greatest
potential to positively affect the perception of our brand and why?

Kerr: Certainly, last year, your smartphone product, your IDEOS product, developed
well. I think the area of the touch-panel devices is so hot and so sexy among every
generation that hi-end smartphones are those that are going to have the best
discussions on the Internet, in social media, and in the mainstream television
branding. So, today I’m most excited about your hi-end smartphones. However, I’m
very much looking forward to your next-generation tablet product, which, again, will
reinforce you as a high-end, lifestyle company, not a telecom company, per se.

WinWin: In the last year, Huawei Device has experienced rapid business growth,
shipping 120 million units of smart devices, 3 million of which were smartphones. It
also doubled its business in North America and Japan. What does Huawei need to do
to build on this momentum?

Kerr: The success Huawei had last year was impressive, particularly in smartphones,
where you could have absorbed more orders except for supply shortages. I think you
need to have a broad, mature product portfolio, with which you can serve the entry,
middle, high and elite segments. And it’s important to have that mature portfolio
across all technologies. But also you do need to focus on building your band equity in
order to really separate yourself from the slew of other Android-enabled smartphone
makers and leverage the fact that Huawei does have a strong a brand presence.
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