HTC News Update 2013: Taiwanese Smartphone Manufacturer To Build Own OS, Now Working With Chinese Government

If you have seen an HTC phone, chances are you would have been amazed why such a high quality and stylish phone is struggling in the smartphone industry. Yes, it had its glory days way behind it, but the Taiwanese manufacturer refuses to give up. 

And now their next target is mainland China. 

Being very 'close' to China, HTC has the privilege to work with the Chinese government in developing their very own smartphone operating system. According to reports by the Wall Street Journal, HTC is working on a platform that will support Chinese-specific applications and services such as Weibo. 

However, it was not clear whether the new OS would be based on Google's Android platform, or it would be an entirely new one. The report said several HTC devices featuring the prototype OS are already being tested by Chinese officials. 

The supposed team-up did not come as a surprise. In recent years, China has been partnering with international manufacturers in order to work on a particular project that will only target the Chinese market. Ever since, the country has been trying to reduce its dependence on software and hardware manufactured or developed abroad. 

In March, a white paper from China's tech ministry stressed and criticized the over-reliance of the Chinese people in Google's Android OS, TechCrunch reported.  

And now, they want to build their own.