High Tech Computer (HTC) was a brand that most of the world didn't recognize a year ago, yet they were a world leader in PDAPhone manufacturing. This year, HTC has made a major push to move away from the Original Design Manufacturing (ODM) market and sell their own branded devices. The strategy appears to be working as they saw their gross margin hit a record high of 37.9% in the 3rd quarter of 2007. This was likely helped by an increase in sales of 18.7% in September to finish out the quarter.

"According to company CFO Hui-ming Cheng. A higher than 30% on-year growth in non-ODM business and the launch of the HTC Touch and other PDA phones in the third quarter helped push up the gross margin, Cheng detailed. Looking forward, revenues from non-ODM business are expected to grow another 40% on year in the fourth quarter, with the proportion of non-ODM business to account for over 90% of HTC total revenues, Cheng estimated."

A year ago, you'd see HTC devices under brand names such as Audiovox, iMate, etc. This year, you see the HTC brand proudly displayed on devices like Sprint's Mogul and the AT&T Wireless Tilt. Continuing their move away from the ODM market, HTC also just announced that they are expanding their relationship with global wireless supply chain partner Brightpoint.