10 Mobile Companies Destined for Eventual Failure

by Don Reisinger

Although HTC is now getting some recognition for being the first vendor to offer Facebook Home on its handsets and its products are quite solid in terms of features and specifications, HTC can’t get any respect in the mobile market. In fact, the company has been largely ignored by a consumer space obsessed with Samsung and Apple. Expect that to continue through 2013.

Nokia is trying hard to make Windows Phone work for its operation, but unfortunately, it just won’t be enough. Windows Phone is not an operating system that can actually drive success in the next few years, and that might just be all the time Nokia has left before it sells off its patents or is acquired. Nokia is simply running out of time.

Speaking of running out of time, BlackBerry can’t quite seem to gain a footing in the mobile space, either. The company released BlackBerry 10 to much fanfare, but since then, the hype has died down. With the Galaxy S4 now available and the updated iPhone 5S coming in a few short months, BlackBerry doesn’t appear to have enough time to solidify its position in the marketplace.

Google might have found a way to shed some of the excess fat at Motorola, but that’s simply not enough. Motorola has yet to release a smartphone or tablet that can compete with those from Samsung or Apple. With Google appearing to keep a light hand on the management of Motorola, the mobile product vendor can’t seem to find a path back to growth. Motorola needs all the help it can get right now. And it’s not getting it from Google.

Sprint is an interesting case. If the company stays independent, its rapidly diminishing cash coffers will be depleted and the company will fail. On the other hand, if it’s acquired by SoftBank or Dish, it will lose its independence and become a puppet of the larger firms. Either way, Sprint’s future doesn’t look all that bright.

The Barnes & Noble Nook was supposed to be the product that would help the bookseller navigate the difficult ebook and tablet markets. Instead, it’s proven to be a disappointment. In fact, Barnes & Noble itself said that the Nook’s sales were disappointing during the 2012 crucial holiday shopping season. Look for the Nook to continue to have trouble in the next several months until Barnes & Noble and its partner Microsoft finally pull the plug.

With its new CEO Kazuo Hirai, Sony has made mobile a key component in its plans. The trouble is there’s nothing there that indicates the company actually knows how to produce a mobile product that can compete with the likes of Apple or Samsung. Until Sony comes up with something of value—and it’s looking like the chances of that are growing slimmer by the day—it will lose the mobile marketplace.

LG is another one of those companies whose products just don’t catch on with buyers in a big way. The company’s products are top-notch, they’re well-designed, and they’re extremely powerful. Yet, LG’s market share is laughable. It appears that in LG’s case, there’s simply no way for the firm to win significant market share in today’s mobile market, despite its best efforts. And that’s too bad.

There was a time when companies like Boost Mobile, which offered contract-free plans to customers, seemed like a nice alternative to major carriers. But with T-Mobile moving to contract-free service plans and Verizon hinting that it will follow suit, it’s hard to determine how Boost and companies like it will retain their market appeal. In the next several months and years, look for smaller firms like Boost to start to die off as bigger carriers take the hint and adopt their business models.

Electronics retailer Best Buy is hardly a pure mobile company, but it has made it clear to its shareholders that it believes that it can be successful by attracting more mobile customers. But there’s one problem: Mobile customers don’t seem to care. In fact, the vast majority of those folks are still heading to Verizon or AT&T stores to buy their phones. That’s bad news for Best Buy and could run the company out of the mobile business sooner than it thinks.