OPPO Wiped Its German Website Amid EU Exit Rumors, Here's Why

Over the weekend, reports of OPPO removing the product from its German website started circulating. In fact, there is no OPPO device listed on the company's official website in Germany. Instead, a poster appears on the page (with automatic translation). Some products are also not available in Germany, including the Reno 8 series, Find N2 Flip.

Several FAQs listed on the site say that OPPO users will continue to use their products without restrictions and receive all future updates.

Earlier, OPPO announced that it was shutting down its business in Germany due to upcoming legal issues and an ongoing patent dispute with Nokia. However, he emphasized that the company will not leave the German market forever.

We reached out to OPO and asked if removing the product from its website is a temporary measure until the company resolves its issues in the German market. Here's the statement we received from OPPO's representative.

In response to Nokia's trade dispute with OPPO, sales of some OPPO products have been temporarily suspended in Germany. In addition to ceasing sales and marketing of related products, OPPO will continue to operate in Germany. As always, users can continue to use their OPO products, access after-sales service, receive future OS updates, and more.

From the above statement, it seems that the suspension of product marketing through the website is part of the consequences for OPPO in Germany. When the patent infringement case against Nokia was lost in the country, it was forced to stop selling not only OPPO brand but also OnePlus phones in the country. Even now, OnePlus doesn't sell phones through its German website, with products limited to headphones, accessories, and the OnePlus Pad.

While OPPO continues to deny its potential exit from major European markets, all signs point to the opposite. Last week, a report claimed that OPPO and OnePlus were planning to fix the issues in France. The company has shut down the chip development division responsible for custom Marisilicon chips due to global economic concerns. With all of this, it remains to be seen what OPPO's future holds in the European region.

The Hindu Editorial Analysis July 19, 2022