Chinese smartphone maker realme was established back in 2018. It served briefly as an OPPO sub-brand before going independent later in the year. But now, it seems that the company will be returning to its roots in a major brand reshuffle.
According to Reuters, realme has confirmed that it is once again becoming a sub-brand under OPPO. Apparently, this change is to allow the two companies to pool resources while also reducing costs. The move follows the OnePlus and OPPO merger in 2021, which was also aimed at streamlining operations and sharing resources.
Chinese publication Leiphone.com reported that this development serves to strengthen coordination between the three companies. Under this new structure, OPPO will serve as the leading brand, while both realme and OnePlus will act as complementary sub-brands with distinct market strategies and goals.
For the most part, it seems the broader management roles will remain intact. realme CEO Sky Li will continue to oversee the sub-brand’s operations. Meanwhile, OnePlus will keep its own leader, Li Jie. Either way, OPPO seems to hope that the integration of these brands will lead to faster and more targeted decisions while avoiding duplicate investments.
Despite the organisational change, realme product launches will continue as planned. However, the brand’s offline service network will be integrated with OPPO’s system. For now, the long-term effects of the restructuring remains to be seen. Though given that the companies will be sharing resources from here on, we can probably expect future products to have some similar features.
(Source: Reuters, Leiphone.com via Android Headlines)
