New Delhi: Apple Inc.'s iPhone sales in India experienced their best quarter ever, indicating that the Cupertino, California-based corporation is finally making headway in the world's fastest-growing smartphone market.
According to data from market research firm Counterpoint, sales grew by 34% year over year to 2.3 million devices in the fourth quarter. Xiaomi Corp. of China and Samsung Electronics Co. of South Korea sold the most smartphones in the quarter, with 9.3 million and 7.2 million devices sold, respectively.
According to Counterpoint's estimations, Apple looks to have made more money than any of its competitors due to the iPhone's high price tag. The American corporation made an estimated $2.09 billion in revenue for the quarter, edging out Samsung, which made roughly $2 billion.
"It's a watershed moment for Apple in India," says one analyst "Counterpoint Technology Market Research partner and research head Neil Shah, headquartered in Mumbai, stated. "During the pandemic, Indians were willing to spend a lot of money on luxury phones because their life revolved around their phones and there was nothing else to spend money on.""
While Apple's iPhone has helped it become the most valuable corporation in the world, it has failed in India's 1.3 billion-person market. Many local buyers cannot afford expensive iPhones, which is exacerbated by the high import duties Apple must pay on devices built outside the country.
Multiple top-level executive departures in the country, sagging sales, and enraged retail partners protesting the company's online discount methods hampered the company in 2018. Apple sold 1.8 million iPhones in the full year, down from 1.9 million in the previous quarter.
However, the IT behemoth has reversed its strategy since then. It has launched its own web store in India, streamlined discounts, and begun local iPhone manufacture. In the coming quarters, it plans to open company-owned retail shops in a number of locations.
During the recent festival buying and gifting season in India, the phone maker offered cashback incentives and flexible payment plans on its basic iPhone 12 model, which was priced at less than 50,000 rupees ($668).
According to World Bank figures, per-capita income in 2020 was less than $2,000, making Apple a difficult sell. According to Counterpoint, the average iPhone selling price in the country was $908 in the most recent quarter, while Samsung's was $278 and Xiaomi's was $172.
Despite the fact that Apple's market share has increased, it is still in the single digits, at slightly over 5% for the quarter. During this time, Indians purchased 44 million smartphones.
It faces obstacles in the market that go beyond price. Foxconn Technology Group and Wistron Corp., two Apple manufacturing partners, have received backlash in India due to their treatment of workers. Following concerns about food safety and housing standards, the American corporation took the unprecedented step of placing a Foxconn factory near the southern Indian city of Chennai on probation.
In addition, the Competition Commission of India, the country's antitrust regulator, has launched an investigation into app store fees.
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