Gulveen Aulakh & Writankar Mukherjee
New Delhi|Kolkata:
Apple's new phone likely to be priced lower than typical flagship products
Apple's invitations for a March 21 event at its headquarters in Cupertino has set off a huge buzz in India about launch of a new product, which many suggest to be the new iPhone SE or special edition that may be meant for emerging markets, priced lower than its typical flagships.
Apple is widely expected to introduce the 4-inch iPhone SE with features from the iPhone 6 and 6s, such as a faster A9 processor, always-on Siri and Live Photos, but packaged in an iPhone 5-sized casing. The device may have power button on top like iPhone 5 and support Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, and VoLTE.
“A new phone with the latest OS and attractive price point will excite people in India,“ said Gartner's research director Anshul Gupta.
Apple headquarters has still not communicated the game plan for the new iPhone to its India team, but trade partners expect the launch in the first phase in India. Analysts expect three to four weeks' time gap in launch time for key emerging countries, primarily India.
This, they say , is to gain on the hype in social media in India around the new iPhone and also to take on Samsung's latest flagship, Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge, sales of which will begin on March 18.
“It is expected that Apple will start shipping of the new iPhone to India in the first phase. Next month, the fight between Apple and Samsung will gain further with the new iPhone and an expected price drop on the current entry model, iPhone 5s, which is expected to be sold at sub-Rs 20,000,“ said a senior trade executive. Some say Apple will further drop prices of iPhone 6S and 6S Plus.
KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, widely considered the most accurate researcher on Apple, previously said in a note that iPhone SE will be priced at $450 (Rs 30,000 approx), while the price for iPhone 5s may well be cut by half. The mid-tier pricing will be extremely attractive in India, where Apple enjoys a massive aspirational value and huge brand recall.“Mid-price smartphones are well suited for emerging markets like India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Brazil, Argentina and Vietnam,“ said Gartner's Gupta.
Tarun Pathak, senior analyst at Hong Kong-based Counterpoint Research, said the price bracket of $500-550 (Rs 34,000 to Rs 37,000) will generate wide interest in India, which is turning out to be one of Apple's key markets.
The mid-price ($300-500) smartphone is still a small market segment in emerging countries with 10-15% of overall smartphone market, but experiencing high growth as smartphone install base has grown is these markets reaching over 200 million in India. Given the high pace of growth in the Indian smartphone market, at a time when developed markets face stagnation, Apple may want to make most of the time here and improve its share in some local markets.
Apple Refiles Application for Own Stores
NEW DELHI Apple has resubmitted its application to open company-owned retail stores in India, after filling in information it missed in the initial filing.The application under the single brand rules has been filed with the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, whichasked the company to submit a revised application due to some gaps in the information provided. Apple's fresh application is now being examined, a senior official told ET. Apple's earlier filing didn't have details of investment and the number of stores it wanted to open here. It has applied after the government dropped the 30% local sourcing rule.
--Ruchika Chitravanshi(COURSTEY
Mar 12 2016 : The Economic Times (Mumbai)