Oppo Gets Another Dumping Over Dodgy Numbers Claim

TCL – whose mobile division currently trades in Australia as Alcatel – has corroborated their sales numbers to ChannelNews, after calling out Oppo for peddling “fictitious” data, laying claim to their dominance as the country’s third largest smartphone seller.

Alcatel Regional Managing Director, Sam Skontos, has thrown down the gauntlet, and challenged fellow smartphone companies to support an independently audited review of industry sales.

“As disappointing as it is to hear our competitors claim the space we have rightfully earned, it is perhaps more disappointing to see so many of these claims simply go unchallenged from the industry bodies, market research groups, analyst reports and often those in the media who take such statements as fact.”

“I challenge the top 10 brands to agree to an independent, confidential audit of their financials”

“I will be contacting my counterparts over the next week or so and will happily publish who is willing to show their results to an independent auditor and those that refuse.”

Skontos points to 2018 full-year IDC data, reflecting TCL’s position as Australia’s third largest smartphone seller [by volume], shipping over 490,000 Alcatel-branded devices.

Including co-branded devices with Telstra and Optus, the company asserts it shipped close to one million devices in Australia last year.

Locally, Alcatel sells budget-friendly smartphones which pledge features seen on mid-range to flagship devices. The phones are sold from retailers such as Officeworks, Big W and Woolworths.

Skontos asserts the local smartphone industry has seen an influx of false claims and incorrect information, deceiving retail partners and consumers.

IDC figures claim to reveal the ‘true state’ of Australia’s smartphone industry, reflecting sell-in of unit volumes according to each company’s input to the intelligence firm.

The data is voluntarily provided by brands, however, Skontos claims other smaller studies continue to “muddy the waters.”

Skontos asserts IDC data rebuffs claims Oppo is Australia’s third largest smartphone seller – a position said to be retained by Alcatel for 3.5 years.

“In the last few months alone we have seen more than a few attempts by our competitors to peddle false information in the market,” he remarks.

“It is disappointing that they think it is OK to make such claims so flippantly when the very data they provide IDC proves them wrong”

“Despite this being a high profile industry given everyone’s fascination with their mobile devices, it is also an industry that has allowed misleading information, hyperbole and plain falsehoods to go unchecked for a long time now”

“I also simply ask that when any sweeping statements get raised by companies in this space, they are appropriately challenged and vetted, as we are doing today by backing up our statements with the only accurate snapshot of the industry.”

The news comes just days before Mobile World Congress 2019, held in Barcelona between February 25 – 28.

The event is used by some of the world’s largest smartphone brands to showcase upcoming releases.