Chinese Phone Giant Cuts Jobs After Going Up Against Apple
- Oppo has merged operations with OnePlus and cut key divisions
- The scale-back is China industry’s first major consolidation
Outside an Oppo store in Shanghai, earlier in March.
Photographer: Qilai Shen/BloombergSmartphone maker Oppo is cutting around 20% of staff in key software and device teams after it merged operations with affiliate OnePlus, the first major consolidation in a Chinese mobile industry struggling with chip shortages and Covid-triggered economic shocks.
Oppo, which in 2016 became the country’s top-selling brand, is retrenching after expanding too rapidly on the hiring front in recent years and attacking a premium segment dominated by Apple Inc., people familiar with the matter said. The cuts affect important units including a team that customizes Android into its in-house ColorOS, and an Internet of Things division that develops a spectrum of wearables such as smartwatches and earbuds, said the people, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter.