HMD Global gave up its 'Pure Android' approach for market access market is that it's carrier-dominated, meaning that a majority of consumers buy their phones ('locked') through a wireless carrier like AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon or from one of the smaller operators that use their network, also known as mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) including MetroPCS, Mint Mobile, Red Pocket, TextNow, Virgin Mobile and Visible. Rantala added that it was this high engagement rate that gave HMD the 'courage to really have big plans for the U.S. 'We are always measuring the engagement rate of people coming to our website and the highest engagement rates we've seen were coming from the USA, at more than 80%, which I can tell you is an incredibly high number.' After seeing a lot of 'curiosity' from U.S consumers in the past two years, HMD Global is now really dialing up and expanding its business 'big time here in the U.S.', said Pekka Rantala, HMD Global's Chief Marketing Officer during an exclusive interview.
