(Add CEO comments, industry background)
HONG KONG, May 21 (Reuters) - Chinese smartphone maker ZTE
Corp is planning to sponsor more NBA teams
to boost its brand in the United States where the company aims
to become the No. 3 smartphone vendor in three years time.
The Shenzhen-based company currently sponsors three U.S.
National Basketball Association and tripled its U.S. marketing
expenses last year. Its smartphone shipments to the world's
second-biggest market jumped more than 50 percent in 2014 and it
is targeting a further 20 percent rise this year.