Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is forging a comeback in India’s smart-phone market with a fresh range of budget segment devices and improved online presence, focusing to recoup ground ceded to Chinese rivals such as Xiaomi Corp.
Samsung, the one and only major non-Chinese player in the country, has already started to gain ground, and a surge in anti-China emotional sentiment in India following a border fight in June is expected to provide a fresh boost up.
Samsung Electronics Co jumped to the No. 2 spot with 26 percent Indian market share in the second quarter behind China-based Xiaomi’s 29 percent, according to tech researcher Counterpoint, as the South Korean firm’s diverse and in-house supply chain helped it keep away from product delays suffered by rivals during COVID pandemic lockdowns. Samsung Electronics Co was in third place with a 16 percent share in the last quarter.
Once the unrivaled leader in the world No 2 smart-phone market, Samsung Electronics Co has over the last 3 years lost Indian markets to Chinese brands, whose devices are perceived as better value for money. But India still records for some 7.5 billion USD in annual retail smart-phone income for Samsung and making it the company’s huge market outer the US. That manufacturing capacity and Samsung’s capacity to resource numerous mechanisms within it, is helping it increase ground amid the pandemic. Chinese smartphone Xiaomi and Oppo suffered local manufacturing hiccups and delays due to COVID-19 lockdown, but Samsung was able to keep delivering phones efficiently. Now Samsung is constructing on the momentum. Samsung has launched 7 new smart-phones since June 2020, 3 of them under Rs10000.
This COVID crisis has forced people to use smart-phones for everything from online classes to digital payments to even connecting with friends on video calls. That’s why these low budget phones are focused on the mass market. In May, Samsung joined with Facebook to train some 200,000 retail stores selling its phones to use social media for sales and marketing. It has also introduced installment payment plans for customers and fresh incentive schemes, including one that gives student discounts on select devices for encouraging sales.
