AT&T drops “Facebook phone” — report

AT&T drops “Facebook phone” — report

14 MAY 2013

After disappointing sales, AT&T has decided to stop selling HTC First – a smartphone with Facebook Home pre-installed – according to a “trusted source” speaking to BGR.

Launched in April, sales of HTC First are apparently less than a meagre 15,000 units. Last week, AT&T slashed the phone’s price from $99 to $0.99 to try and spark interest, but the US operator has now thrown in the towel – according to the BGR report – opting to discontinue the Android-powered device.

The official line from AT&T, however, is more circumspect. “We’ve made no decisions on future plans,” Mark Siegel, an AT&T spokesperson, told Bloomberg.

The cloud hanging over HTC First comes at a time when the number of downloads for the Facebook Home app – which takes over the look and feel of devices – has been far from stellar, reaching one million since launch in April and receiving mixed reviews.

For its part, Facebook says it has taken criticism of its Home app on-board and has plans to revamp it.

Author

Ken Wieland

Ken has been part of the MWC Mobile World Daily editorial team for the last three years, and is now contributing regularly to Mobile World Live. He has been a telecoms journalist for over 15 years, which includes eight...More

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