Apple sticks to ‘vintage’ strategy in India
bangalore — Sometimes, it seems like Apple’s strategy in India is stuck exactly three years in the past.
Apple’s second ‘Designed in California, assembled in India’ models are hitting store shelves in the world’s fastest-growing smartphone market. It’s the vintage iPhone 6S, a model introduced back in 2015.
India has been steadily increasing taxes on smartphone imports to encourage local manufacturing, pushing global brands to make products in the South Asian country. As a result, Apple began assembling the iPhone SE at a Wistron facility in Bangalore last year. While the older-model iPhones are listed for $375, that’s still beyond the reach of the majority of Indian buyers. Still, such vintage models serve as an entry point for aspiring Apple customers, offering a way for the Cupertino, California-based company to build some early loyalty.
A representative for Apple in India didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi won a small victory for his ‘Make in India’ programme when Samsung Electronics Co opened the doors to the world’s largest smartphone factory near New Delhi on Monday. The facility will make inexpensive models as well as its flagship S9. Xiaomi, OnePlus, Oppo and Vivo have all set up assembly and research & development facilities in India, attracted by a market that’s projected to have 810 million smartphones by 2021, according to Ericsson. — Bloomberg