HTC offers FREEBIE repair on new models with cracked screens

HTC is offering users free fixes for cracked screens on the company's new handset models.

The company said that all HTC One, One Max and One Mini customers in the US who purchase their device on or after February 18 will be eligible to receive one free repair from the company on cracked screens in the first six months of ownership.

The offer is not part of a mass recall or settlement and there has been nothing to suggest that HTC handsets are more prone to cracking than other vendors. Rather, the offer is part of a larger package the company is offering to potential customers.

Other perks in the package include updates to current versions of Android over a two-year period on all three devices and a free account with Google Drive which will offer users up to 50GB of cloud storage. HTC has noted in the past that the updates for Android can be particularly difficult for vendors to distribute and manage.

"There is a need to make sure that that money spent to buy these premium devices goes further. That the phones are taken care of. That customers are taken care of," HTC said.

"The industry hears this from customers every day and we thought it was time to act."

That HTC would step up efforts to push its handsets in the market and offer promotional deals now comes as little surprise. The company has been haemorrhaging both customers and cash as of late.

Last week, the company said in its quarterly earnings report that revenues were down more than 17 billion New Taiwanese dollars ($562m, £336m) over the same period a year ago. According to research from Comscore, HTC occupies just 6.7 per cent of the US handset market with a share which has been dropping steadily in recent months.

As a result, HTC has vowed to shift its focus away from the One line of premium devices and focus instead on mid-range handsets which are more likely to spread in the growing markets of developing countries. ®