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<keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword>, the multinational electronic company from South Korea, is investing about Rs 5,000 crore so that it can more than double the mobile phone production capacity in its Noida, Uttar Pradesh plant by 2020. This, including nearly Rs 2,000 crore that it had pledged last year, would be Samsung’s biggest investment in India so far, even as its market share faces severe threat from Chinese rivals. Samsung, which holds the top position in smartphone market both in the world and in India is planning to make the South Asian nation its hub for manufacture and export, from where shipments would be sent to Europe, Middle East, Africa and elsewhere. "They (the company) have taken another site close to the existing one (in Noida), doubling the area from 130,000 square metres," a senior government official told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/hardware/samsung-to-invest-rs-5000-crore-to-expand-noida-plant/articleshow/59008448.cms">ET</a>. Samsung already locally manufactures its phones that are sold in India, leading to better pricing and control over the supply chain, crucial for a market as intensely competitive as India. As per government officials aware of the developments, the Noida plant would see this investment being made in parts over the coming years. Even though mobile phones would be the bigger focus, Samsung will also make efforts to double the production capacity of refrigerators. The investment has been planned at a time when the handset industry is facing concerns over the continuation of tax sops for local production once the goods and services tax rolls out on July 1.

Samsung to invest Rs 5,000 crore to double production capacity in Noida plant

New Delhi, Jan 20 () Consumer electronics major Samsung is investing Rs 3,500 crore to set up a smartphone display manufacturing unit in Noida.
Samsung India Electronics, the Indian unit of South Korean electronics giant, has transferred a land parcel of around 64,905 sq metres to Samsung Display, for a consideration of Rs 92.20 crore at its Noida plant, UP in two installments, according to the regulatory filings before the Registrar of Companies (RoC).
Besides, Samsung India Electronics has also granted a loan of Rs 3,500 crore to Samsung Display Noida (SDN) for a period of three years, according to documents sources by business intelligence platform Paper.vc.
"The parent entity of Samsung Noida Display Pvt Ltd Viz Samsung Display Company Ltd, korea has provided the coprorate guarantee equivalent to the loan amount to the company," the filing stated.
The draft corporate guarantee is to be issued by Samsung Display Co Ltd, korea, in favour of the company, it added.
Samsung Display Noida, a group entity of the company, which has been incorporated "with the principal business of manufacturing, assembling, processing and sales of displays (including their parts, components and accessories) for all types and sizes of electronic devices".
E-mails sent to Samsung India did not elicit a response.
To establish a manufacturing unit, it had approached Samsung India Electronics for transfer of land parcel.
Eungkyo Seo, wholetime director of the company is also a director of SDN, it added.
In the Indian handset market Samsung India competes with the likes of Xiaomi, OnePlus and LG in India.
Samsung India Electronics' consolidated net profit fell over 58 per cent to Rs 1,540.5 crore in 2018-19, according to a regulatory filing. The firm had posted a net profit of Rs 3,712.8 crore in the financial year 2017-18.
However, the company total income rose 20 per cent to Rs 73,085.9 crore in FY19 from Rs 61,065.6 crore in the previous fiscal, as per the documents filed by the company to the Registrar of Companies (RoC). KRH MKJ

Samsung to invest Rs 3,500 cr for setting up smartphone display manufacturing unit in Noida

<keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword>’s Galaxy Note7 recall is the largest ever in consumer electronics in India and this is going to impact the company’s quarterly results adversely. 
 
Samsung was expecting to sell nearly 70,000 units of Galaxy Note 7 during the quarter but now is likely to face a dent of around Rs 420 crore. 
 
Globally also, Samsung has cut its operating profit guidance by 33% at $2.3 billion for the last three months. 
 
As per reports, Samsung Note7 recall could end up costing up to $17billion. 
 
Now, Samsung India is in damage control mode and will push other smartphones under Note flagship. 
 
A Samsung India spokesperson told ET has a robust range of mobile phones across categories and the company is headed for record sales of handsets in India this year. 
 
Samsung India may revive Galaxy Note 5, which was discontinued to focus on the Note 7. It may offer the Galaxy S7 Edge to the approximate 20,000 Note 7 pre-booked customers in India, or an option to return their money. 
 
ET reported Samsung India was set to start manufacturing Note 7 in the country at the Noida plant. 
 Meanwhile, Samsung’s loss is going to be <keyword id="6354427" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Apple">Apple</keyword>’s gain and the <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword> maker has enough iPhone7 and iPhone 7Plus in the Indian market to meet the demand. 
 
"Apple has ensured availability of sufficient stocks since it wants to make the most of Note 7's absence. In fact, iPhone supplies are still not steady in tier II and III cities, but Apple will now beef up stock there as well. Around 40% of the sales is that of iPhone 7 Plus compared with 15-20% earlier for the pricier variant,” CEO of a leading cellphone retail store told ET.

Samsung India to pitch its other smartphones to damage control Galaxy Note7’s recall, quarterly results to take a hit

<keyword id="6354427" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Apple">Apple</keyword> has been planning to start manufacturing iPhones in India but according to a top-ranking government official, the company's demand for exemptions as part of its investment plan will come under close scrutiny. 
 
"No other company has made these demands which Apple is making, so why should they be given special treatment?” a high-ranking government source told ET. 
 
Apple has sought concessions related to taxation, local procurement and labelling requirements. 
 During his visit to the country last year, Apple CEO <keyword id="191843" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tim-Cook">Tim Cook</keyword> had said India was the next big market for the company. Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> had urged Cook to set up factories in India when they met during that trip. The government currently provides subsidies for investments in special economic zones in order to woo investors. 
 
Earlier, Apple has asked for permission to set up fully owned retail outlets by forgoing the compulsory 30% local sourcing norm on the grounds that it was bringing cutting-edge technology to India. The finance ministry didn't allow the exemption. 
 
Since then, the company has been planning to set up factories in India as it looks to shift some of its manufacturing from China. It manufactures products in six countries, with most of them being made in China. 
 The company is said to be planning to assemble phones in <keyword id="6354321" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bengaluru">Bengaluru</keyword> for the local market through a contract maker. Some reports said the company may also be considering plants in Ahmedabad and Gurgaon. Apple has refused to comment on such reports. 
 Rivals such as <keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword> have started sourcing parts from within the country while exporting products made at plants in Noida and Sriperumbudur.

Making iPhones in India might not be easy for Apple, may not get easy concessions from government

In another major push to Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword>’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, <keyword id="16129" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="HTC">HTC</keyword> has decided to make mobile handsets in India. 
 
After Samsung Electronics, HTC has become the second major global smartphone maker to enter India to make handsets. 
 
The company has signed an agreement with Global Devices Network, which established a manufacturing and assembling unit in Noida three month back. 
 
Commercial production is expected to start in July as trials have started. 
 
Global Devices Network (GDN) managing director Nitesh Gupta confirmed to Economic Times that the company was in talks to start commercial assembling of HTC smartphones. 
 
GDN produces smartphones for Zen. 
 
HTC will pierce in the entry-level to mid-segment devices, priced between Rs 10,000 and about Rs 25,000. A quality control unit will also be set up at the manufacturer's plant. 
 
"Besides the evident duty differentiation of 6% to 6.5% that companies would get after making in India, they will also get access to a big market and labour," Jayanth Kolla, co-founder of telecom research firm Convergence Catalyst, told ET. 
 
Meanwhile, Sony, LG, Xiaomi and Motorola have also shown interest in manufacturing in India due to potential of the country's smartphone market Research firm Gartner's principal analyst Anshul Gupta told the financial daily that he expected Indian smartphone sales to grow 40% in 2015, up from 27% in 2014. 
 
(Image: Reuters)

HTC does a Samsung, to manufacture mobile handsets in India

Handset makers such as <keyword id="10591" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Samsung">Samsung</keyword> and <keyword id="71696" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Micromax">Micromax</keyword> have doubled their imports of semi-knocked down (SKD) mobile phone units into India in June. <keyword id="2582251" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Cybex-Exim-Solutions">Cybex Exim Solutions</keyword>, which exclusively shared its data with ET, has said that Samsung and Micromax have imported 6.9 million SKD mobile phone units in the last month, more than double the 3.4 million units of imports in the same month last year. 

	The cause behind the increase was the government's decision to change the import duty structure, which made the assembling of phones cheaper than importing them in the country.
 

	In the quarter to June, import of SKD units jumped 64% year-on-year to 18.14 million, while sequentially, SKD shipments soared 55%, reported the financial daily.
 Meanwhile, assembling is considered as the first step towards complete local manufacturing, a desire expressed by most of the top handset vendors such as <keyword id="874458" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Xiaomi">Xiaomi</keyword>, Micromax, Lava, Intex, Sony, <keyword id="6356116" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="LG">LG</keyword>, <keyword id="16129" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="HTC">HTC</keyword> and Asus. 

	Market leader Samsung has also talked about expanding its current production capacity, besides setting up a new factory.
 

	SKD imports of the South Korean company, which now assembles all of its locally-sold phones at its Noida plant, crossed 4.2 million units last month. It has been importing on an average 3.4 million SKD mobile phone units a month. 
 Imports of SKD units by Micromax, India's No 2 handset player, have surged 10 times over the last year. "Local manufacturing makes us stronger as a brand in competition without doubt," Micromax chief executive officer <keyword id="127875" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Vineet-Taneja">Vineet Taneja</keyword> said. "I feel a lot more confident today because we're able to deliver with great efficiency and speed and better prices than before." 

	According to data, the company assembled more than 1 million smartphones in June. 
 <keyword id="6354671" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Foxconn">Foxconn</keyword>, the world's largest contract manufacturer, sees a huge opportunity in India following the changes in the import duty structure. The company, famous for making <keyword id="6354427" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Apple">Apple</keyword> iPhones and iPads, plans to invest over $2 billion in setting up 10-12 factories for manufacturing smartphones and consumer electronics by 2020. 

	"Local manufacturing makes a significant impact on bottom line and to remain aggressive in the competitive market," said Gartner's research director Anshul Gupta. "In a highly competitive market with low margins, difference in import duty warrants for local manufacturing." 
 

	Intex, Lava and Karbonn, which were mainly importing all their products, are increasing local assembly by the month. Intex has increased production by four times since it started local assembly in November 2014. 
	 
	(Image: Indiatimes)

Expect a big take off in cellphone assembling! Imports of semi-knocked down devices up 64%

New Delhi, Apr 21 () Many appliances and consumer durables manufacturers have decided not to resume manufacturing despite the government relaxing certain guidelines for industries to operate in lockdown 2.0, preferring to wait till the curbs are fully lifted.Companies like Panasonic India, Godrej Appliances, Dixon Technologies and Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd said with retail outlets shut there is no point to start production as there is existing unsold inventory of March at warehouses and dealers.Moreover, in certain states like Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and some districts like Noida of Uttar Pradesh, local authorities and governments decided not to allow any manufacturing activities.According to Panasonic India, the company would wait to start production until a favourable market condition returns."As our factory in Jhajhar, Haryana is in the green zone, we are engaging with the local authorities for permission to start manufacturing in the near future. The issue today is more on the demand side than supply, we have enough inventory with our distributors of our ACs and refrigerators to meet consumer demands," Panasonic India and South Asia President and CEO Manish Sharma told .The objective behind starting operations will be ensuring sustainability over longer term once markets are allowed to operate, he added. "We are prepared for staggered operations with workers coming in batches ensuring social distancing, frequent sanitizing, usage of masks among other initiatives to protect our workforce," Sharma explained.Expressing similar views, Godrej Appliances Business Head and EVP Kamal Nandi said, "Where will I ship my products? There are no retail activities on the ground and moreover, there is enough stocks available with the dealers. There is no point in production at this stage."Nandi said Godrej Appliances would like to wait till May 3, when the lockdown ends, to plan resumption of production as under the current guidelines it has to consider many factors, including accommodating staff at the plant.Companies like LG, Samsung, Dixon and smart phone makers Oppo and Vivo -- which have manufacturing units in industrial zones at Noida and Greater Noida -- have not resumed production as the district administration of Gautam Buddha Nagar has banned all commercial and industrial activities inside the districts.Dixon Technologies, India's largest contract manufacture in the appliance and consumer electronic, has also not started manufacturing at its units as it is still awaiting approvals.When asked whether the company has started its manufacturing operation, Dixon Technologies CMD Sunil Vachani said, "Not yet. We are waiting for the approvals from the Noida Authority."He further said, "Both of our units at Noida and Tirupati fall under red zone. So we are waiting for the approval. We are hoping it to be sooner than later." While, Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd (SPPL), which manufactures TV under the brand name of Thomson and Kodak, said that the new guidelines should be realistic and helpful for the industry."Currently, we are looking forward to the new notification by the Centre and the state governments and whatever norms the government has decided we will be happy to implement," SPPL CEO Avneet Singh Marwah said.He, however, said all "those notifications and norms should be realistic and the intention of the government should be to give permission to start the manufacturing sites".Meanwhile, Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals said it has partially resumed its manufacturing at its plants."… pursuant to the receipt of confirmation/ permission received from the concerned administrative authorities, the company has partially resumed the operations at its plants located at Goa and Vadodara in a phased manner," the company said in a regulatory filing.Earlier, in February and March, the Indian appliances and consumer electronics industry was battling for components as it is largely dependent on China for the sourcing of components and some of the finished goods.According to a study by the industry body Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) and Frost &amp; Sullivan, the industry had a total market size of Rs 76,400 crore in 2018-19. KRH RKL MKJ

Appliance, consumer electronics makers look at production resumption after lockdown lifted

(Eds: Recasting overnight story) New Delhi, Apr 22 () Many appliances and consumer durables manufacturers have decided not to resume manufacturing despite the government relaxing certain guidelines for industries to operate in lockdown 2.0, preferring to wait till the curbs are fully lifted. Companies like Panasonic India, Godrej Appliances, Dixon Technologies and Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd said with retail outlets shut there is no point to start production as there is existing unsold inventory of March at warehouses and dealers. Moreover, in certain states like Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu and some districts like Noida of Uttar Pradesh, local authorities and governments decided not to allow any manufacturing activities. According to Panasonic India, the company would wait to start production until a favourable market condition returns. "As our factory in Jhajhar, Haryana is in the green zone, we are engaging with the local authorities for permission to start manufacturing in the near future. The issue today is more on the demand side than supply, we have enough inventory with our distributors of our ACs and refrigerators to meet consumer demands," Panasonic India and South Asia President and CEO Manish Sharma told . The objective behind starting operations will be ensuring sustainability over longer term once markets are allowed to operate, he added. "We are prepared for staggered operations with workers coming in batches ensuring social distancing, frequent sanitizing, usage of masks among other initiatives to protect our workforce," Sharma explained. Expressing similar views, Godrej Appliances Business Head and EVP Kamal Nandi said, "Where will I ship my products? There are no retail activities on the ground and moreover, there is enough stocks available with the dealers. There is no point in production at this stage." Nandi said Godrej Appliances would like to wait till May 3, when the lockdown ends, to plan resumption of production as under the current guidelines it has to consider many factors, including accommodating staff at the plant. Companies like LG, Samsung, Dixon and smart phone makers Oppo and Vivo -- which have manufacturing units in industrial zones at Noida and Greater Noida -- have not resumed production as the district administration of Gautam Buddha Nagar has banned all commercial and industrial activities inside the districts. Dixon Technologies, India's largest contract manufacture in the appliance and consumer electronic, has also not started manufacturing at its units as it is still awaiting approvals. When asked whether the company has started its manufacturing operation, Dixon Technologies CMD Sunil Vachani said, "Not yet. We are waiting for the approvals from the Noida Authority." He further said, "Both of our units at Noida and Tirupati fall under red zone. So we are waiting for the approval. We are hoping it to be sooner than later." While, Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd (SPPL), which manufactures TV under the brand name of Thomson and Kodak, said that the new guidelines should be realistic and helpful for the industry. "Currently, we are looking forward to the new notification by the Centre and the state governments and whatever norms the government has decided we will be happy to implement," SPPL CEO Avneet Singh Marwah said. He, however, said all "those notifications and norms should be realistic and the intention of the government should be to give permission to start the manufacturing sites". Meanwhile, Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals said it has partially resumed its manufacturing at its plants. "… pursuant to the receipt of confirmation/ permission received from the concerned administrative authorities, the company has partially resumed the operations at its plants located at Goa and Vadodara in a phased manner," the company said in a regulatory filing. Earlier, in February and March, the Indian appliances and consumer electronics industry was battling for components as it is largely dependent on China for the sourcing of components and some of the finished goods. According to a study by the industry body Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) and Frost &amp; Sullivan, the industry had a total market size of Rs 76,400 crore in 2018-19. KRH RKL MKJ DRRDRR

Appliance, consumer electronics makers look at production resumption post lockdown

New Delhi, May 12 () Top companies across sectors - automobile maker Maruti Suzuki, consumer electronics giant Samsung to IT giant Infosys - have reopened factories and offices as India took its first steps towards resuming economic activity after weeks under a near-total coronavirus lockdown. While the government has allowed businesses to resume under strict guidelines, companies are not rushing to achieve pre-COVID-19 run-rates and instead are calibrating staff strength as they are aware that any incident of infection can prove costly. Companies said employee safety and workplace hygiene is the prime focus. While Maruti resumed operations at its Manesar plant in Haryana on Tuesday, Infosys opened offices in some cities with up to 5 per cent staff and plans to gradually raise employee strength to 40 per cent. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has less than 1 per cent of its employees currently in India offices. Mahindra &amp; Mahindra too started operations at its factories with a limited number of workers. Flipkart, Panasonic India, Whirlpool and Dabur are among a host of companies that have put in place plans to restart operations with a small section of staff. Tata group-owned jewellery brand Tanishq has announced its plans to reopen its 328 stores across the country in a phased manner. The government imposed a nationwide lockdown on March 25, and it has already been extended twice -- first until May 3 and then again until May 17. However, some curbs have been eased beginning April 20 with permission being given to industries in rural areas to restart. Later, production, sale and transport of goods in areas where virus cases are less severe have also been allowed. However, the process of restarting factories and businesses is likely to be protracted, with production only gradually ramping up towards operational capacity levels. IHS Markit said although the limited restart of some industries has been permitted since April 20, India will still suffer severe disruptions to its industrial output due to the protracted lockdown. "The Indian economy is facing a recession in the 2020-21 financial year for the first time since 1979-80, during the second OPEC oil crisis shock," IHS Markit said. "Consequently, IHS Markit expects the lockdown measures to result in a contraction of Indian industrial production in the 2020-21 financial year." But several companies across sectors ranging from textiles to consumer electronics and liquor to pharma have partially resumed operations after getting permission from local authorities. While Panasonic India and South Asia President &amp; CEO Manish Sharma said the company plans to start operations at its factory with 30 per cent capacity and slowly take it up to 50 per cent in a month's time, Samsung Electronics India said its Noida factory has started limited operations. The Noida factory of Dixon Technologies too has resumed operations. The firm's Tirupati and Dehradun plants too have started operations at about one-third capacity, which will be scaled up to 75-80 per cent in the next one week, said Sunil Vachani, Chairman, Dixon Technologies. Neeraj Bahl, the CEO of BSH Home Appliances -- German company which manufactures and sells under Bosch and Siemens brands in India -- said the firm is in process of starting production in its Tamil Nadu factory with limited staff. Mahendra Singhi, President, Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA), said 25-30 per cent of cement production capacity in the country has resumed. JK Lakshmi Cement director Shailendra Chouksey said the firm has clearances to operate all its seven plants in five states with reduced staff strength and following government's COVID-19 guidelines for factories. "However, these measures alone shall not suffice. Unless construction is allowed rather encouraged to resume operations", the sector outlook would not be very good, he said. Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA) president Kamal Nandi said slowly retail operations are opening up in green and orange zones. "Roughly industry's 30-35 per cent outlets are open throughout the country though geographically not equally distributed." "We have also got permission to open factories in green and orange zones. Most of the brands are preparing to resume operations. Some brands started last week and some would start from this week. Even more important, the supplier's plant is opening up and we are all preparing to resume operations and slowly production would start," he said. There is still no pressing need for the brands to go ahead and start mass production from day one as there is a lot of inventory in warehouses and with dealers, he added. Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) director-general Rajesh Menon said the auto sector lost over Rs 90,000 crore in revenue due to the lockdown. Ashok Leyland MD &amp; CEO Vipin Sondhi said these are truly unprecedented times, and the government and industry need to work closely to bring the industry back on its feet. The government is said to be working on a second fiscal package to support businesses, particularly small and mid-sized companies that account for about a third of India's gross domestic product (GDP) and employ more than 11 crore people. KRH RKL ANZ MR

Cos cautiously resume work as India begins reopening economy

New Delhi, May 20 () Smartphone maker Vivo India on Wednesday said two construction workers at its new manufacturing facility in Uttar Pradesh were wrongly diagnosed COVID-19 positive and they have now tested negative. The company said none of the Vivo employees from the 30 per cent workforce allowed to come to work has been found infected with the coronavirus. The statement comes after Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate on Monday said two workers at Vivo's manufacturing facility had tested positive for COVID-19 and the company has voluntarily shut its operations for the time being. "No worker at the vivo factory has been found COVID positive. However, at the construction site of the new vivo manufacturing plant, 15 kilometres away from the operational factory and managed by a third-party construction company, two construction workers (third-party employees) were misdiagnosed. "Nonetheless, as per the latest lab test reports that came in today, both the workers have been found COVID negative," the company said in a statement. The company said its manufacturing facility in Greater Noida continues to be operational. It had resumed operations on May 9. "The facility continues to abide by all prescribed standard operating procedures to ensure safety and wellbeing of its current 3000 employees (30 per cent of total workforce capacity) that continue to work at the state of the art facility in Gautam Budh Nagar," the statement said. The company said it continues strict adherence to regular medical check-ups, social distancing norms and limited movement in common areas. "Health and safety of our employees and partners are of paramount importance to us. No vivo employee has tested positive till date and the company is taking all precautionary measures and adhering to all government guidelines," Vivo India Director for Brand Strategy Nipun Marya said. The company had received permission from Uttar Pradesh government to resume operations with 30 per cent capacity in the third phase of lockdown which started from May 4. The company continues to adhere to work from home for all head office staff while resuming production with 30 per cent capacity at the manufacturing facility, it added. According to IDC, Vivo was the second largest mobile handset company in India in terms of shipments with market share of 21 per cent in the January-March 2020 quarter. Xiaomi led the market with 31.2 per cent share and Samsung followed Vivo with 15.6 per cent share. PRS ABM ABM

Two construction workers wrongly diagnosed COVID-19 positive, no employee infected: Vivo

<ul><li>Shopkeepers in <keyword id="115737" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nehru-Place">Nehru Place</keyword>, India’s largest electronics market, are reporting only minor issues in the supply of new phones so far. </li><li>Vendors point to problems with the fresh supply of Vivo and Apple phones in particular. </li><li>More than phones, the crunch in the supply of mobile accessories poses a bigger problem. </li></ul>The coronavirus outbreak is disrupting <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/news/the-worlds-biggest-smartphone-conference-was-just-cancelled-due-to-coronavirus-concerns/amp_articleshow/74108152.cms">global tech conferences</a>. In India, 29 cases of the infection have been confirmed with <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/coronavirus-scare-forces-a-noida-school-to-shut-down/articleshow/74452435.cms">new reports</a> coming in from the national capital New Delhi which is home to Nehru Place, the country's largest electronics market. Shopkeepers in the area report that <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-largest-electronics-market-isnt-worried-about-coronavirus-because-its-already-facing-the-effects-of-violence-in-delhi/articleshow/74469529.cms">footfall has already been sparse</a> due to last month's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-second-highest-ranking-law-officer-sees-no-urgency-in-a-case-on-delhi-violence/articleshow/74318695.cms">violence in northeast Delhi</a>. The coronavirus hasn't impacted foot fall but vendors are reporting supply issues. Even though they have plenty of phones in stock, fresh handsets from China are in short supply according to shopkeepers in Nehru Place that spoke to Business Insider. <div type="image" title="nehruplace" msid="74485019" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Nehru Place&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>
 “There have been some issues with bringing in a fresh supply of Xiaomi phones but our existing supply is comfortable,” said Ranjeet Singh, the manager for one of five Go Mobile stores in Nehru Place. Companies like Oppo and Samsung that have their own assembly plants set up in India have largely been sheltered from any immediate impact on the supply chain from the coronavirus outbreak. However, the same cannot be said when it comes to accessories — headphones, chargers, mobile covers, screen guards, and SD cards. <div type="image" title="nehruplace3" msid="74485001" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Ranjeet Singh, the manager at one of the Go Mobile stores in Nehru Place&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>
 “We have had some issues with bringing new supply for Vivo and Apple. The highest effect has been on accessories because they aren’t manufactured in India,” said Singh. Accessories sell faster than handsets and supply is likely to run out faster according to sources. A <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/noida/china-imports-stop-mobile-mkt-feels-heat/articleshow/74250403.cms">TOI</a> report states that other parts of the city are feeling the crunch as well. Traders in Noida are afraid that their stocks will run out by the end of the month. Fearing the worst, vendors are hiking prices for mobile accessories. New phones won’t run out just yet Most vendors say that they are comfortable with the supply they have in store. However, one of them said that handset prices are being jacked up. “Wholesalers are increasing prices expecting a supply crunch in the near future,” Neeraj Kumar, the manager of Logica, an independent authorised dealer in Nehru Place. “Oppo and Samsung are fine. But there have been issues with Vivo… We have what we have, new supply is an issue,” he added. 
<div type="image" title="Nehruplace4" msid="74485027" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Inside one of the stores in Nehru Place&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 The China-based smartphone manufacturer Vivo is set to launch the Vivo V19 and Vivo V19 Pro later this month. While the company representatives in shops across the market are confident that the phone will launch as per schedule, third-party vendors aren’t so sure. “The Vivo V19 will launch either on March 16 or 17, maximum by March 20,” said Farhan, a representative for Vivo at one of the stores. There were also rumours of OnePlus delaying the launch of their latest smartphone. However, a company spokesperson told <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-8-launch-event-coronavirus/articleshow/74279199.cms">IANS</a> that the OnePlus 8, OnePlus 8 Pro and the OnePlus 8 Lite will be unveiled as scheduled — in late March or early April. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indias-largest-electronics-market-isnt-worried-about-coronavirus-because-its-already-facing-the-effects-of-violence-in-delhi/articleshow/74469529.cms">India's largest electronics market isn't worried about coronavirus — because it's already facing the effects of violence in Delhi</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/coronavirus-panic-exploited-by-hackers-to-infect-computers-with-malware/articleshow/73807243.cms">Hackers are using the coronavirus panic to trick victims into downloading malware</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/indian-investors-lose-5-lakh-as-the-coronavirus-sweeps-over-the-stock-market/articleshow/74381404.cms">Indian investors lose ₹5 lakh crore as the coronavirus sweeps over the stock market</a>

Coronavirus rattles the supply chain in India’s largest electronics market, hitting mobile accessories more than new phones

<keyword id="3658" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> is consistently being bandied as the next major growth market for all smartphone companies, but there is one company that’s really struggling to crack India. The company in question is the most valuable one in the world -- <keyword id="6354427" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="apple">Apple</keyword>. According to CounterPoint’s latest report, Apple’s market share has dropped to an all-time low in India, with its share of the smartphone market dropping to below 2%. The problem is a combination of the nature of the Indian smartphone consumer, Indian laws and Apple’s stubbornness. This quarter Xiaomi and Samsung have emerged as the defacto leaders with their combined market share in India pushing 30%. Samsung managed to regain its lead in India with a share of 29%, up from 24% in the previous quarter, as per a report by Canalys. Xiaomi also grew to 28% market share in the country. While Tim Cook has reiterated often that India is a key market for the Cupertino-based giant, Apple has hit a new low in India, which is clearly the most important smartphone market outside of China. Pricing doesn’t allow Apple to compete for market share in India The problem for the company is that India is primarily a sub Rs 15,000 market, while the cheapest <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword> – the iPhone SE costs Rs 26,000, and runs three-year-old hardware. Apple doesn’t make cheap products because it doesn’t want to be perceived as a mass market smartphone brand. The Indian market is wildly different from the one in the United States, Europe and even China, which is Apple’s favourite market off-late. These markets are dominated by the operators and their contracts, where users can get the latest and greatest iPhone for about the same Rs 15,000 amount, put in as down payment. The space for phones that cost more than Rs 30,000 is just 4% of the Indian smartphone market. And that is commanded by OnePlus, followed by Samsung. Even if Apple were to get 100% market share in the premium space, it would still only command 4% of the market. Even when competing on price, older iPhones like the 6S and 7 lose out to newer phones from companies like OnePlus on both marketing and also technical capability. Indians tend to buy phones on the basis of specifications and even some of the newer models lose out to brands like OnePlus in the premium segment as the iPhone 6S and 7 models are perceived to be inferior. Hardware disadvantage Apple’s hardware disadvantage swells up when one talks about the cheapest iPhone models in this country. Apple simply doesn’t have a product in that price bracket, the sub-Rs 20,000 zone, and that’s the price point where the market for new smartphones is exploding. While the cheapest iPhone, the SE, costs Rs 26,000, it’s not the best selling iPhone here. It is the iPhone 6, which first popped up in 2014...and here we are in 2018. There are two reasons for this -- first, the iPhone 6 has a bigger screen (4.7-inch) which is more to the liking of Indian users; and second, design-wise, it’s not too dissimilar from the iPhone 8 which came out at the fag end of 2017. With the entry of Reliance Jio in India in late 2016, Indians have developed a voracious appetite for consuming video on the go. The iPhone SE, which uses the design of the iPhone 5 and 5S, has a rather small 4-inch screen. Newer phones like the Redmi Note 5 have much larger 5.99-inch screens. That’s a difference of 2-inches and considering mobile video, it's a huge one. The iPhone SE and iPhone 6, which are the two cheapest iPhones in India also have dated cameras. Nowadays, phones like the Honor 9 Lite and Redmi Note 5 Pro also offer dual cameras with an iPhone X-like bokeh mode -- something these older, cheaper iPhones can’t hope to match. Network conditions in India are often quite poor, connectivity wise, which results in smartphones consuming more battery. Apple’s iPhones have never been known for battery life. The most affordable iPhone in India (iPhone SE) has a meagre 1,624mAh battery, while phones half its price are pushing battery packs that are more than double the size. iPhones also don’t offer hardware features that are popular in emerging markets like ours. For instance, there is no support for dual SIM cards, and there is no support for expandable memory. With newer models like the iPhone 7, iPhone 8 and iPhone X, there isn’t even a headphone jack -- something competitors like Samsung and OnePlus are providing to customers in the premium segment. Apple hasn’t been able to push its design as a premium advantage either, as Chinese smartphone manufacturers have aped iPhone-like designs on almost all their phones. In fact, the design of the iPhone X has been democratised by Chinese smartphone makers. For instance, the iPhone X-style notch display can be found even on new phones like the Honor 9N that starts at just Rs 13,999 while offering dual cameras on not only the back but also for selfies, and also providing a battery that’s almost twice as big as the iPhone SE. Even their software is designed in a way that Android looks more like iOS. Android modifications from vendors like <keyword id="6357456" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="huawei">Huawei</keyword>, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo follow the same basic iOS-like design language. Software disadvantage It’s bad enough that many Android smartphone makers have designed their software to mimic the look and feel of iOS, but Apple’s problems are compounded by the fact that its own services perform poorly in India or are non-existent. Apple Maps is perhaps the biggest no-show. It doesn’t do turn-by-turn navigation in India and its mapping coverage is abysmal in the country. It is a matter of fact that Apple Maps can’t be used in India as a reliable tool for commuting. Apple Pay isn’t available in India at a time where digital payments are taking off in the country. Paytm and Google’s Tez payments systems are taking off in India massively. Samsung launched Samsung Pay in India last year. Apple Pay is dependent on NFC, while Samsung Pay uses a combination of NFC and magnetic secure transaction (MST), which mimics the magnetic signal a credit or debit card makes to a POS machine. Siri, on most days doesn’t understand the Indian accent as well as the Google Assistant, and nor can it do much. Heck, <keyword id="10387" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Microsoft">Microsoft</keyword>’s Cortana and Amazon’s Alexa do a better job and this is despite the fact that Apple was the first company to deploy a virtual assistant. While Apple’s services hobble on its own trophy -- the iPhone -- its competitors -- Google, Amazon and Microsoft have their services performing better on iOS. For mapping, most people use Google Maps. For search, Google Search becomes the default, and for productivity, Microsoft’s Office crushes Apple’s iWork apps. Rarely, you’re using Apple software on the iPhone in India. Even Apple Music, which is one of the rare examples of an Apple service doing well in the country, has been flanked by local competition like Ganna.com, Jio music, Wynk and Saavn. All of whom have a free tier. On older iPhones, Apple’s iOS updates have also crippled the experience of the iPhone. A couple of years ago, there used to be a strong argument in favour of the iPhone as it would perform well for over two years. Apple’s recent updates have made older iPhones inferior in comparison to newer Android phones that cost the same. Apple is addressing this issue in this year's iOS 12 update, which makes huge performance improvements to older iPhones, but it could be too little too late. The app store also doesn't make life easy for users as it demands a credit card for a user to even download free apps. That's not the case on the Google Play store. Apple has been late in localising services for India The larger issue here is that Apple isn’t localising its services for India in the way it has attempted to for China. This is indicative of the fact that Apple hasn’t taken the time or put enough resources behind localising its services for this country. Samsung and Huawei have R&amp;D centres in India customising services for the market. Xiaomi also prioritises and customises products for India. Apple opened an App Accelerator in Bangalore and a facility for Apple Maps in Hyderabad only in 2016. Google has had software and services being developed out of India since the mid-2000s, while Microsoft has been in India since the early 90’s. This has, in turn, inhibited Apple’s ability to quickly pivot. Its biggest competitor, Google, on a platform level, makes products for India. Google CEO Sundar Pichai said last year, “India shapes how we build products. If something works in India it will work globally.” And this philosophy can be seen in the customisations that Google has made to core services like Android, Maps, YouTube, Search and even payments. Its next billion division has made “Go” editions of Android, YouTube, Search and Maps, which are designed to work better on low power phones and poorer network conditions. They have even invested in KaiOS that powers feature phones like the Jio Phone creating its own versions of YouTube, Google Search and Assistant in India. For Apple to replicate its China success in India, it has to do a lot more than what it did in China. Even in China, Apple’s momentum has slowed so it has a steep slope to climb there as well. In China, Google and Amazon are almost non-existent. In India, they are big players. Apple isn’t able to compete with Google with regards to services. Most people use Google services which are part of all Android phones and one doesn’t need to buy a comparatively expensive iPhone to enjoy them. Apple and the Indian government: Frenemies? Apple hasn’t seen eye to eye with the Indian government for long. Apple expected concessions for manufacturing in India. It never made headway with that. While it lobbied for tax concessions -- brands like Xiaomi, Oppo and Huawei all got on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ programme which grants locally assembled phones some tax concessions. Only recently, Apple has started manufacturing both the iPhone SE and iPhone 6S in India. There are some reports that Apple has locked in a deal with one of its ODM vendors to manufacture even the iPhone X, but that’s not happening right now. The price variance between the iPhone X and the new Samsung Galaxy S9+ is quite startling. The iPhone X tops out at a whopping Rs 1,07,999 while the latest Galaxy S9+ tops out at Rs 69,000 for its top-end model in India. That’s almost a gap of Rs 40,000 which ironically is the cost of the 128GB model of the OnePlus 6 which is currently the best selling smartphone in the premium segment in this country. In the US, the iPhone X costs $1,149 which is around Rs 79,000 and the Galaxy S9+ costs $792 (around Rs 55,000). This points towards the fact that India is the most expensive place to purchase an iPhone and also the fact that Samsung’s phones have a huge price advantage in India that they don’t enjoy even in the US. And a lot of this is due to the fact that the S9+ is assembled in Samsung’s factory in Greater Noida (a satellite town outside New Delhi) which also happens to be the largest smartphone manufacturing plant in the world. The iPhone is further hobbled by the fact that it has an international warranty and India has a bubbling <keyword id="395545" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="grey-market">grey market</keyword>. It’s totally possible for someone to buy an imported iPhone for much lesser than the official price in India and still enjoy global warranty on the product. For years, Apple has been hoping to get permissions to set up its iconic Apple Stores in India. Indian law stipulates that single brand retail can only happen when products use 30% raw materials that are locally sourced -- that’s a hard problem to solve for Apple. That’s led to it selling its phones via resellers who often have discounted products to move inventory, thereby diluting Apple’s premium identity. In order to move more affordable iPhones, the Indian government has also rejected Apple’s plan for selling refurbished iPhones in India. More recently, Apple has been deadlocked in a stalemate with Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in India over the installation of its spam reporting app on the iPhone. The telecom regulator has been reported to be taking extreme steps which could result in the iPhone being blocked from telecom networks in India if Apple doesn’t play ball, but that seems to be changing. An update in iOS 12 could possibly pave the way for an extension in the iMessage app for the TRAI to push out its spam reporting feature. The big takeaway is that Apple’s brand positioning makes its life hard enough in a market where feature phone sales are still growing, however, it hasn’t helped its own cause by not investing in India in a timely manner and also not adopting and partaking quickly enough in initiatives of the Indian government which has put it at a disadvantage with regards to lobbying.

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