HTC no longer bundling Beats headphones with new handsets

HTC will no longer be shipping Beats headphones with its new handsets - at least in the immediate future.

The decision has come after the music-centric HTC Rezound - which came bundled with a pair of the high-end earbuds - failed to sell.

Speaking to CNET, HTC product executive Martin Fichter explained that consumers are more concerned with the functionality on their new handset than the brand of their headphones.

"An accessory like the headphone doesn't factor in when someone is buying a smartphone," Fichter revealed. "If they want a Beats headphone, they'll buy it directly."

HTC acquired a 51 per cent stake in Beats back in August 2011, an investment which cost the firm $300 million.

Soon afterwards, handsets like the HTC Sensation XE began to appear, which came packaged with Beats-branded headphones and pre-loaded with Beats Audio software.

According to Fichter, the Taiwanese manufacturer will continue to include the Beats Audio tech in its blowers, but customers looking to pick up the HTC One X should expect to find their gratis headphones a little less red.