当华为小米联想争吵之时，中兴却在美国意外成功

既然中国每年的智能手机出货量达到4亿台，中国的智能手机制造商又为什么要进军美国市场？换言之，美国对他们有什么特殊意义？

中国品牌中兴（ZTE）提出的策略名为ACW——“美国，中国，世界”。顺序没错！

2015年，中兴在美国的智能手机出货量增长了30%，达到1500万台，是唯一一家在美国实现如此大规模销量的中国制造商。中兴终端技术与合作高级总监林玮民表示：“在中国所有原始设备制造商当中，包括华为、小米、联想的摩托罗拉在内，只有我们在美国取得了巨大的市场份额。”

据IDC和市场研究机构Counterpoint Research的统计，中兴在美国智能手机市场的份额排在第四位，前三位分别是苹果、三星电子和其韩国竞争对手LG。

自2013年以来，中兴共赞助了五支NBA球队，包括2015年的冠军金州勇士队，还有美国高尔夫球巡回赛选手李明真。从2010年进入美国市场以来，中兴一直在增加与所有大型运营商合作的手机产品。

我们还是不禁要问，为什么？

尽管中国的市场规模庞大，但美国人在昂贵的智能手机上的消费，依旧超过其他任何国家——平均在500美元甚至更高。中兴进军美国的动力，不仅源自在全世界最富有的国家树立一个品牌所带来的声誉；也是源自愿意支付高价的消费者所带来的销售前景。

2015年，中兴首次在美国高调推出了售价449美元的旗舰手机Axon，这款手机两周后在中国上市。

此外，美国还有另外一种趋势吸引着中兴等公司：运营商正在放弃对昂贵手机的补贴。中兴一直宣传其产品是高质量、低成本的手机。

美国电话电报公司（AT&T）、威瑞森（Verizon）和其他运营商，均取消了两年合约。现在，消费者要么预付购机费，要么在两年内分期付款。这将导致三星、苹果甚至LG等高端品牌手机的零售价进一步提高，正是基于这个原因，中兴才会自信地表示，公司预计，未来三年内在美国的市场份额将超过LG。

在中兴赞助休斯顿火箭队之前，其在美国的品牌知名度仅有1%。但2015年已经提高到了16%。这不值得吹嘘，但话说回来，几年前也没有太多人会预料到，一家中国智能手机公司会进入美国市场的前五强。

在各种有利趋势的推动下，中兴及其竞争对手华为或许将继续保持增长势头。中国电信设备制造商华为旗下也有智能手机品牌（中兴的主营业务也是电信设备），公司计划2016年首次在美国销售其600美元的旗舰手机。

美国依旧拥有全世界最大的“土豪”消费者，因此未来将有更多中国品牌蜂拥而至。（财富中文网）

译者：刘进龙/汪皓

Why do Chinese smartphone makers come to America when their home market ships 400 million smartphones a year? In other words, why is America special?

The Chinese brand ZTE describes its strategy as ACW—’America, China, Worldwide.’ In that order.

It boasts of its U.S. smartphone shipments growing 30% last year, to 15 million phones, and being the only Chinese maker with sizeable sales in the U.S. market. “Look at all [original equipment manufacturers] in China”—including Huawei, oft-discussed Xiaomi, Lenovo’s Motorola—”we’re the only one with sizeable market share,” says Waiman Lam, ZTE’s senior director of technology and partnership.

ZTE’s is fourth in U.S. smartphone market share, behind Apple, Samsung Electronicsand its Korean rival LG, according to IDC and Counterpoint Research.

ZTE has sponsored five NBA teams since 2013, including last year’s champions the Golden State Warriors, and a PGA golfer named Danny Lee. It has expanded phone offerings with all the big carriers since it came to the U.S. in 2010.

Again, why?

Despite China’s size, Americans still spend more than anyone in the world on expensive smartphones—those around $500 and up. It is not just the prestige of having a brand in the world’s richest country; it’s the promise of selling to consumers willing to pay a high sticker price.

Last year ZTE debuted its flagship phone called Axon for $449 notably first in the U.S., then two weeks later in China.

There’s another trend in the U.S. boosting companies like ZTE, which market themselves as high-spec, lower-cost: the carriers are giving up on subsidizing expensive phones.

AT&T, Verizonand the others have done away with two-year contracts. Now customers pay the phone cost upfront or split the payments over two years. It makes the retail price of a top-end Samsung, Apple or even LG a little more shocking, and is one reason ZTE is confident saying it expects to pass LG in U.S. market share in three years.

Before ZTE sponsored the Houston Rockets in 2013, it had 1% name recognition in the U.S.. Last year, that grew to 16%. That’s not much to brag about, but then again, not too many expected a Chinese smartphone company to join the top five U.S. market share a few years ago.

ZTE’s growth, as well as rival Huawei’s, may continue amid the favorable trends. Huawei, a Chinese telecom equipment maker with a smartphone brand (ZTE’s main business is also telecom equipment) plans to sell its flagship $600 phone in the U.S. this year for the first time.

The U.S. still has the biggest spenders, so expect the Chinese brands to keep coming.