Two of Samsung’s competitors from China are reportedly leaving the European market, starting with a few key regions. The OEMs in question are Oppo and OnePlus, which are more or less the same given that OnePlus is an Oppo subsidiary.
Reportedly, Oppo and OnePlus are leaving Europe, starting with Germany, the UK, France, and the Netherlands (via @MaxJmb). This drastic business decision will inadvertently give Samsung and Apple more space and wiggle room in the European market.
Similar to how Samsung and Apple fought for the market share Huawei left behind, the two tech giants will likely compete to win over Oppo and OnePlus customers in Europe. It’s an opportunity for Samsung to improve its market share across the old continent.
As to why Oppo and OnePlus are reportedly pulling out of Europe, it’s unclear. But one possibility might be that the EU’s increasingly stricter regulations on repairability, firmware support, and sustainability are making business difficult for Oppo and OnePlus, who may be failing to adapt to the latest pro-consumer laws imposed by the European Union.
Phones sold in Europe are now required to receive at least three years of OS upgrades and have to feature replaceable batteries, while OEMs need to provide replacement batteries over a product’s lifetime. Samsung is already meeting EU regulations across the board, but other, smaller OEMs may find it increasingly difficult to comply while maintaining profitability.
Oddly enough, Oppo recently announced the foldable Find N2 Flip in the UK, but it now looks like this device won’t get a sequel, and moving forward, the N2 Flip could suffer from poor support in Europe. On the other hand, at least one company, Honor, seems willing to try its luck in the global market and in Europe. The company announced at MWC 2023 that it would soon start competing globally with the biggest brands in the industry and introduced the Honor Magic Vs. Of course, only time will tell if Honor will succeed where Oppo and OnePlus have failed.
