Yota Devices, the Russian company that sells two-screened Android smartphones, has a new owner after shareholder Telconet Capital sold its majority 64.9 percent holding to Hong Kong-listed REX Global Entertainment for $100 million, according to a regulatory filing.
Yota caught the attention with a unique dual-screen smartphone which takes aim at the increasingly homogeneous design of phones by offering an e-ink screen on its reverse. Its first device — called simply the Yota Phone — emerged in December 2012 and was subsequently sold in 20 markets across Europe, Russia and Middle East. Yota didn’t disclose sales figures, but media reports suggest it didn’t fare well.
The device did manage to build a cut following among those who appreciate something different, though, and its second release — Yota Phone 2 — was better received. Indeed, Yota’s own Indiegogo campaign to bring the odd-looking phone to the U.S. ended with nearly $300,000 in pledges, vastly overshooting its initial $50,000 target.
