Big news for smart phone cameras, Chinese telecom giant Huawei has announced a partnership with Leica Camera.
According to the self congratulatory press release the deal be a “co-operation with shared premium ambitions and spirit, which will see both technology and photography brands combining their shared ethos in a long-term commitment to the art of craftsmanship, meticulous engineering and the spirit of winning collaboration, to create a powerhouse in the reinvention of smartphone photography.”
CEO of Huawei Consumer BG Richard Yu said, “We, Huawei, take the utmost pride in exceptional quality and Leica is in a class of its own in its sector.”
Oliver Kaltner, CEO of Leica Camera AG “The technology partnership with Huawei offers Leica Camera an excellent opportunity to introduce its proven optical expertise into a new product segment and to unlock exciting business areas in the field of mobile devices”.
This is not the first time Leica has partnered with a phone manufacturer. They’ve worked with Panasonic and Leica has repackaged Panasonic cameras with the famous red dot before selling them at a much higher price.
It’s expected the luxury element of Leica will add appeal for Huawei in its the local market.
Huawei became the world’s third-largest smartphone manufacturer in 2012 and was the first Chinese company to sell more than 100 million mobile phones in one year in 2015. So it makes sense for Leica to team up with them as they continue their work in the smartphone market.
The companies will work together on research and development, co-engineering, user experience, marketing and retail distribution and it’s expected to be a long term collaboration.