ZTE USA, which claims to be the fourth largest smartphone manufacturer in the U.S. and second largest in the no-contract market, is seeking to crowdsource “the next great mobile device.”
Project CSX will engage directly with consumers at every step of the development process, from conception to what is finally delivered to consumers. The project will be broken into two key development stages where users can submit and vote for their favorite ideas.
Submissions are held to three rules: it must be a mobile product, the technology must be realistically possible by 2017, and the final product must be affordable for the general population.
“This is the first time a phone manufacturer is stepping out and crowdsourcing something entirely new, from start to finish,” said Lixin Cheng, chairman and CEO of ZTE USA. “It’s a bold approach for the industry that demonstrates how ZTE keeps consumers at the heart of everything we imagine, design and deliver. Project CSX is taking our core value to the next level.”
