“a Comparative Study of Apple Iphones and Samsung Handsets and Finding the Customers Perception About the Same…”
Introduction
There’s some evidence that Apple Inc.’s strategy to increase its share of the fast-growing smart phone market in India may be working. Apple’s shipped 252,000 iPhones to India in the last quarter of 2012, three times the number in the previous three months, according to new data by Singapore-based mobile research firm Canalys. The figure was more than double from the same quarter a year earlier, the data showed. Apple launched the iPhone5 in India in November to coincide with the Hindu festival of Diwali, when consumers usually splurge on lifestyle products. At the same time, Apple changed its distribution strategy for India, aiming to get its product to a wider range of customers.
Rachel Lash ford, Managing Director for mobile at Canalys, says Apple’s larger sales in India are down to brisk sales for the iPhone 5 and the decision to expand it distribution network. An official with Apple in India declined to comment. In September last year, the Cupertino, Calif.-company tied up with specialized distribution companies such as Ingram Micro Inc. and Redington India Ltd. to get its phones across to retailers. The strategy helped Apple expand into smaller Indian cities and towns.
Previously, Apple used to distribute its phones in India through a partnership with mobile phone carriers like Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Aircel Ltd. This distribution model, in which the carriers bundled the phones with data services, didn’t work well for Apple in India.
Despite the uptick in sales, Apple’s got a long way to go to catch up with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., the market leader in India. In the October-December period, Apple’s share of the 5.2 million smart phones shipped to India was only 5%, data from Canalys showed. During this period, Samsung, the market leader, commanded 40% of the smart phone market in India, Canalys says.
The relatively high cost of the iPhone compared to Samsung’s products is a major reason for the gap, Ms. Lashford says. “Until Apple is
There’s some evidence that Apple Inc.’s strategy to increase its share of the fast-growing smart phone market in India may be working. Apple’s shipped 252,000 iPhones to India in the last quarter of 2012, three times the number in the previous three months, according to new data by Singapore-based mobile research firm Canalys. The figure was more than double from the same quarter a year earlier, the data showed. Apple launched the iPhone5 in India in November to coincide with the Hindu festival of Diwali, when consumers usually splurge on lifestyle products. At the same time, Apple changed its distribution strategy for India, aiming to get its product to a wider range of customers.
Rachel Lash ford, Managing Director for mobile at Canalys, says Apple’s larger sales in India are down to brisk sales for the iPhone 5 and the decision to expand it distribution network. An official with Apple in India declined to comment. In September last year, the Cupertino, Calif.-company tied up with specialized distribution companies such as Ingram Micro Inc. and Redington India Ltd. to get its phones across to retailers. The strategy helped Apple expand into smaller Indian cities and towns.
Previously, Apple used to distribute its phones in India through a partnership with mobile phone carriers like Bharti Airtel Ltd. and Aircel Ltd. This distribution model, in which the carriers bundled the phones with data services, didn’t work well for Apple in India.
Despite the uptick in sales, Apple’s got a long way to go to catch up with Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., the market leader in India. In the October-December period, Apple’s share of the 5.2 million smart phones shipped to India was only 5%, data from Canalys showed. During this period, Samsung, the market leader, commanded 40% of the smart phone market in India, Canalys says.
The relatively high cost of the iPhone compared to Samsung’s products is a major reason for the gap, Ms. Lashford says. “Until Apple is