The Cupertino tech giant Apple has cut the price of the best selling model in India, iPhone 5s for the third time in just three months. This way, the price of the smartphone has been reduced by almost half of what it was in September. This move is done in order to shore up the sales of this phone as the demand for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus has plunged after the festive season of Diwali.
The iPhone 5s prices start at Rs 24,999, which is quite low from its price of Rs 44,500 in September. The Indian price of the iPhone 5s is the lowest across the globe despite the decline of rupee value and high import taxes that make the Apple products expensive in the market.
The sales of the current generation models – iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus have been dampened following a short period of pickup during Diwali, stated a senior executive at a leading retail chain. This has eventually resulted in a drastic drop in the price of the iPhone 5s. It makes sense for Apple as iPhone 5s is the best selling model in India and manufacturers rarely reduce the price of popular models.
As per the retailers, iPhone 5s amounts to 50 percent of the overall sales of Apple in the country. It is likely that the latest move by Apple is to double the sales in India by the December quarter, which is a high sales period for the tech giant globally due to the launch of new models.
As per Tarun Pathak, the Senior Telecom Analyst at the research firm Counterpoint Reseach, Apple wants to focus on the Rs 16,000 to Rs 27,000 price bracket in the country. The company aims to lock more customers into its eco-system that would definitely build a base for upgradation when the latest iPhone models are launched. S
It is believed that Apple can gain a significant share this quarter with the price drop as its direct competitor Samsung has not launched any new models in the segment.
