<keyword id="143" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bollywood">Bollywood</keyword>'s vibrant colours and dynamic music have turned out to be key reference points for Japanese consumer electronics major Sony, which is seeking to strengthen its dominance in premium TV panel segment in India by selling more products tailored for the market, according to PTI.Having tasted success, the company is now even looking to come up with high-end ultra high definition (4K) technology at affordable price range even as it steps up its consumer research here.With Internet-enabled TV becoming popular, the company will also launch a new range, which will have <keyword id="10879" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="YouTube">YouTube</keyword> button on remote control, later this year."India is a quite unique and big market for us, so we have made lot of research and development to make best product for India," Sony India Pvt Ltd Managing Director <keyword id="1107282" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kenichiro-Hibi">Kenichiro Hibi</keyword> told in an interview with news agency.The company's research team in India conducts studies about consumer behaviour, pattern of TV usage, kind of programme watched, preference for particular picture and colour; and the kind of sound they like.These feedback are then shared with global engineers along inputs as to what kind of features, picture quality and sound is required for India so as to develop product to meet Indian requirements, Hibi added.Citing example of Sony's popular 46 and 49 inches model range developed specially for India, he said: "The Indian people, they like Bollywood movies. They are crazy about sound and they never compromise on sound. Even they like to be very colourful. So, the colour reproduction should be very precise."The effort, thus, was to highlight colour reproduction as much as possible, while a sub-woofer was added to cater to their preference for sound with the TV, he said."That is very big hit in India. This is thanks to our input, they (global engineers) developed model just for India," Hibi said.Earlier the company had come out with a 24 inches, small TV segment as an India-specific product."We would continue to do it, not just in small inches, but even in 46 and 49 inches, mid to high segment," he added.Hibi said Sony is also gearing up to take similar steps with 4K products, which are priced highly and available mostly in big screen sizes of 85 inches."Even the 4K technology, we are trying to make it more affordable. This hi-end technology would be brought on more affordable range," Hibi said without elaborating details.At present, Sony's 4K TV can cost up to Rs 5 lakh, while starting at around Rs 83,000.He also said with increasing popularity of Internet- enabled TV, Sony will launch a new range, which will have YouTube button on remote control, later this year."We found that many consumers are watching YouTube on TV and they faced difficulties in accessing due to multiple steps on the remote button. Our new product will remove all that with a single button," Hibi said. He further said it is not only in television business that Sony is focusing on for India-specific products. Even in audio business also it has adopted similar strategy.

Sony coming up with TVs and remotes ‘tailor-made for India’

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/54027028.cms" /> <keyword id="105741" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sony-Corp">Sony Corp</keyword>, the Japanese multinational conglomerate, is considering a new category exclusively for the Indian market, given its slipping revenue growth in the market. 
 
The company has already gone a global restructuring, exiting from laptops and entry-to-mid-segment smartphones. 
 
A separate team has been made to develop the new category of in-home lifestyle products to be made in India, and a new TV manufacturing plant is also under consideration to be set up in India. 
 "Sony globally has a lot of patents and technology in areas like semiconductors, which we want to utilise to create and launch a new category for the Indian market," <keyword id="233026" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sony-India">Sony India</keyword> MD <keyword id="1107282" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Kenichiro-Hibi">Kenichiro Hibi</keyword> told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/electronics/sony-to-create-new-category-of-in-home-lifestyle-products-exclusively-for-india/articleshow/54022953.cms">ET</a>. "Headquarters is helping us. However, these products will not be traditional white goods or small appliances like refrigerators or ACs, but newer lifestyle products." 
 
Hibi said that with the implementation of GST in the near future, Sony could also set up its own factory in India. 
 
<a href="http://www.moreaboutadvertising.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Sony-building.jpg">Image source</a>

Sony to create exclusive in-home lifestyle products for Indian market

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/33218816.cms" />NEW DELHI: Sony has overtaken ace rival Apple to emerge the second largest smartphone brand in India in value sales, thanks largely to its strategy to focus on the Rs 10,000-20,000 smartphone space, backed by Rs 300-crore marketing spend. 
 According to latest data from market tracker IDC, the Japanese electronics major garnered 9.1% value share in the Indian smartphone market in the October-December quarter of 2013 against Apple's 7% share. <keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword> dominated the market with 43% value share. 
 IDC India <keyword id="157228" type="POSITION" weightage="40" keywordseo="senior-market-analyst">senior market analyst</keyword> Manasi Yadav said Sony's strong positioning in the mid-tier smartphone space of Rs 10,000-20,000 price band has delivered results for the company. “Some of the top selling models for Sony are Xperia M Dual and Xperia C priced in this bracket, which is one of the fastest growing segments in the Indian smartphone market,” Yadav said. 
 The CEO of a leading mobility device retail chain said Apple lost out since it withdrew its largest selling model, <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword>4, from India as a global decision thereby vacating the sweet spot ofRs 20,000 pricing. “While this loss of sales prompted Apple to relaunch iPhone 4 once again in India in January, sales have not picked up since it is not at all spending on marketing or offering any buyback offer and even the initial euphoria around iPhone 5s has sobered down,” the person said. 
 Analysts, however, said Sony’s share in the smartphone market may have slid in the January-March quarter, with <keyword id="6354716" type="CITY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Nokia">Nokia</keyword> venturing into <keyword id="6355645" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="android">Android</keyword> phones with its aggressively priced X series, Apple relaunching iPhone 4 and Micromax rolling out a new range of Canvas phones. IDC will release its figures for the January-March quarter in May or June. 
 India is one of the rare markets outside Japan where Sony has achieved major success in the smartphones. <keyword id="1107282" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="40" keywordseo="Kenichiro-Hibi">Kenichiro Hibi</keyword>, managing director at <keyword id="233026" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Sony-India">Sony India</keyword>, said the company's smartphone business has attained similar revenues as its flagship television business in the fiscal ended March 31. The two businesses contributed around 70% to the company's turnover of about Rs 10,000 crore during the year. 
 
“However, smartphone business will overtake television business in sales this fiscal year,” Hibi told ET. “For us, both television and smartphone will be the main pillars to continue the pace of growth in India,” he said. 
 
Hibi said the company is poised to further grow its share this fiscal with flagship Xperia Z2 ready for launch this quarter. “The smartphone busine<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/33218796.cms" style="margin: 5px; float: left;" />ss doubled in last one year which led to 20% growth in overall sales in 2013-14. We expect to grow at a similar pace this fiscal as well to touch Rs 12,000 crore sales,” he said. 
 Indian brands such as Micromax, Karbonn and Lava have notched up significant share in the smartphone volume sales. While Samsung had 38% <keyword id="34527" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="40" keywordseo="market-share">market share</keyword> by unit sales in the October-December quarter, Micromax is second with 13% share. Sony's volume share was 5.5% while Apple's was 2%.

Sony Overtakes Apple To Emerge Second Largest Smartphone Brand In India

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/48342247.cms" />‘<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=make+in+india">Make in India</a>’ has brought <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=sony">Sony Corp</a> back to India after a decade. The Japanese company will soon start manufacturing its Bravia line of television in the country. 
 <keyword id="105741" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sony-Corp">Sony Corp</keyword> has entered into an agreement to manufacture <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=bravia">Bravia</a> line at Taiwanese contract manufacturer major <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Foxconn">Foxconn</a>'s plant near Chennai. 
 
Not only this, Sony may set up its own plant in India as it is also chalking out a possibility of making <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=smartphones">smartphones</a> in the country. 
 
"While at present, all production will be for the Indian market, we may also start exports. If this turns out to be successful, Sony may evaluate setting up its own plant in India," Sony India managing director, Kenichiro Hibi, told Economic Times. 
 "The government's '<keyword id="6354869" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="make-in-India">Make in India</keyword>' policy and the growing importance of India for Sony worldwide has accelerated our decision to manufacture in India once again. Local production will help us to be more competitive, lower costs and allow faster turnaround time to launch newer models," Hibi told ET. 
 
For the starters, Sony is manufacturing two 43-inch models running Google's Android operating system at the Sriperumbudur plant of Competition Team Technology (India) and the first shipment will start from Tuesday. The production line will soon be expanded to include 22-43 inch screen televisions. 
 
Reportedly, after US, China and Japan, India is the fourth-largest market for Sony as Sony India clocked Rs 10,600 crore sales in 2014-15, with televisions and smartphones contributing 40% each to its revenues. 
 
Sony exited India manufacturing in 2004 when it locked down its facility in Haryana. 
 
Its rivals <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=samsung">Samsung</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=LG">LG</a> already manufacture TVs in India. 
 
ET reported that smartphone manufacturers, too, plan to start manufacturing in India as the country is expected to overtake US to become the second-largest smartphone market by 2017. 
 
(Image: Reuters)

After a decade, Sony Corp back to India. Will make Bravia line of TVs in India

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/47924516.cms" />Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream of turning India into a manufacturing has gathered enough steam and after Asus and HTC, Sony is also mulling to ‘<keyword id="6354869" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="make-in-India">Make in India</keyword>’ via <keyword id="6354671" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Foxconn">Foxconn</keyword>. 
 
Japanese electronics giant Sony is looking at local sourcing after 2004. 
 
Top industry sources told Times of India that Sony decided in favour of local manufacturing due to several incentives offered by the government. 
 
"However, Sony is not looking at manufacturing on its own at this moment," a source told TOI. 
 
Sony India MD Kenichiro Hibi told the news daily that a final decision is pending on the same and there might be a possibility of long term plan of Making in India. 
 
Via Foxconn's facilities, Sony will forgo heavy investments and will this will also leave the company with an option to set up an independent manufacturing location in the future. 
 
Not only Sony, Foxconn is mulling to start many factories in India where it will manufacture products for a host of companies such as Xiaomi and Apple. 
 
Finance minister Arun Jaitley had announced provisions in line with the government's 'Make in India' initiative. In case of mobile phones, for example, local manufacturing will be cheaper by around 11%. 
 
TOI reported that India was coming out as a key market for Sony globally at a time when operations in many other countries are struggling. 
 
(Image: Reuters)

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Sony coming up with TVs and remotes ‘tailor-made for India’

BI India Bureau

Sony to create exclusive in-home lifestyle products for Indian market

BI India Bureau

Sony Overtakes Apple To Emerge Second Largest Smartphone Brand In India

Economic Times

After a decade, Sony Corp back to India. Will make Bravia line of TVs in India

BI India Bureau

After Apple, Xiaomi, Sony to ‘Make in India’ via Foxconn

BI India Bureau