HTC Beats Headphones Won't Be Pack-In Item Anymore

Despite the strong branding power of HTC and Beats Audio, HTC does not have any plans to continue backing in Beats headphones with future smartphone handsets. The idea was incorporated with the recent Rezound phone, but apparently HTC realized that hardly swayed anyone to buy the phone. When customers shop for a new smartphone, the included headphones aren't exactly at the top of the list of priorities.

Cnet quoted HTC product executive Martin Fichter as saying, "An accessory like the headphone doesn't factor in when someone is buying a smartphone. If they want a Beats headphone, they'll buy it directly." It may even sound a bit obvious, but HTC was originally thinking that would be a huge differentiating factor in the increasingly competitive smartphone market. It's even a factor as to why the company decided to buy a majority stake in the Beats brand.

That doesn't mean the partnership will dissolve. Obviously, Beats headphones continue to be popular in the Bose-alternative circuit. But without a tie-in to HTC products, what exactly does HTC hope to accomplish now? That's anyone's guess. For now, though, HTC does incorporate the sophisticated Beats audio technology in its handsets, but that's another feature that customers probably don't even care about.

[via Cnet]