Foxconn CEO Terry Gou, who has a history of bold statements, continued his outspoken ways at Hon Hai Precision’s annual shareholders meeting on Monday. All translations seem to claim Gou urged customers to wait for the iPhone 5, “saying that the new model will put Samsung’s Galaxy III to shame.”
Gou said he has made it a lifetime goal to defeat Samsung — “a company with a track record of snitching on its competitors.”… He was referring to Samsung’s action in 2010 of snitching on four Taiwanese companies in an investigation by the European Commission on price-fixing in the flat panel industry…Samsung was exempted from the investigation by serving as a “tainted witness.” … Gou also urged consumers to wait for the launch of Apple’s iPhone 5, saying that the new model will put Samsung’s Galaxy III to shame.
Gou reportedly continued by saying Foxconn’s Sakai plant “has an exclusive agreement with Corning Inc., an American manufacturer of glass, on large panel supply” and that his “competitors will not be able to secure any such material if they wished to.” It is expected that Foxconn will issue a statement regarding Gou’s quotes as they have in the past. Numerous times in the past, it has been claimed that Gou was misquoted.
“I respect the Japanese and especially like their execution and communication styles,” Gou said, “Unlike the Koreans, they will not hit you from behind.”
In May there were reports quoting Gou as saying Apple was making preparations for an Apple television. Foxconn later claimed the Gou “neither [confirmed] nor [speculated] about Foxconn’s involvement in the production of any product.”
