iPhone Popularity Declines In China

). The Chinese telecommunications giant has been reluctant to sell the iPhone for a couple of reasons. Some analysts have speculated that the high subsidies have turned off China Mobile. Other reports claimed that the company wanted to receive a portion of the revenue Apple derives from the App Store. Nonetheless, Apple CEO Tim Cook has been meeting with China Mobile executives in an attempt to persuade them. While nothing has been officially announced, the two parties are expected to come to an agreement very soon. Until then, Apple might have to endure some

) are not performing nearly as well. The two firms continue to rank very well in the "brand recognition" category (placing just behind Apple and Samsung), but users are losing interest in their products. Nokia, for example, fell from first to third place in the area of "most used smartphone brand." HTC dropped to fifth place, though the report did not state where the company placed last year. Among the HTC users who were surveyed, 33.8 percent revealed that they may purchase a Samsung smartphone at some point in the future. Since TrendForce chose to publish the survey highlights instead of the full results, diehard Apple fans may dismiss the accuracy of this report. Investors who are long Apple may do the same. But even if the survey results are inaccurate, there's no denying that Apple is struggling to maintain its growth in China. During the June quarter, sales were not merely flat -- they