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Low Cellphone Sales In Cities
Samir Makwana, Nov 19, 2008 1756 hrs ISTHigh prices and inflation taking a toll
Apple's iPhone 3G released this July didn't attract smartphone lovers due to its heavy price, neither did the Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Samsung, LG, HTC, or Motorola handsets. With Apple iPhone 3G's entry into the Indian market, there was anticipation about an increase in the sale of cellphones, as competition against the touchscreen eye-candy.
Besides high prices, inflation is thought to be another factor responsible for taking a toll on the touchscreen phone market. According to recent ORG data, the handset sales in 35 Indian cities went down by 3.7% during the July-September period as compared to earlier corresponding periods.
Aghast industry folks claim this plunge to be the first ever major drop in mobile phone sales. Industry believes that the market fluctuation will affect mobile phone sales again, despite a sales growth of 3.5%, thanks to the festive season. Since major cities have been struck by inflation, handset manufacturers have shifted their focus to rural areas. Lloyd Mathias, Senior Director and Sales Head for India & Southwest Asia at Motorola, seconds the shift saying, "Consumers are opting not to upgrade their phones. We then have to focus on the semi-urban and rural markets for growth."
A drop in the global sales of Nokia smartphones was reported. Recently, Nokia had issued a fourth quarter update and preliminary guidance for 2009 which stated:
"In the last few weeks, the global economic slowdown, combined with unprecedented currency volatility, has resulted in a sharp pull back in global consumer spending."
While the major handset manufacturers come out with smartphones with higher prices, like Sony Ericsson's Xperia X1, consumers refrain from emptying their wallet. Though the major players have queued up with their upcoming handsets to be introduced globally, they're planning for more 'affordable' or 'wallet friendly' handsets for the Indian public. But will their strategy of shifting focus to rural markets help them? We'd like to hear what you've to say on that.
Source: Economic Times
Besides high prices, inflation is thought to be another factor responsible for taking a toll on the touchscreen phone market. According to recent ORG data, the handset sales in 35 Indian cities went down by 3.7% during the July-September period as compared to earlier corresponding periods.
Aghast industry folks claim this plunge to be the first ever major drop in mobile phone sales. Industry believes that the market fluctuation will affect mobile phone sales again, despite a sales growth of 3.5%, thanks to the festive season. Since major cities have been struck by inflation, handset manufacturers have shifted their focus to rural areas. Lloyd Mathias, Senior Director and Sales Head for India & Southwest Asia at Motorola, seconds the shift saying, "Consumers are opting not to upgrade their phones. We then have to focus on the semi-urban and rural markets for growth."
A drop in the global sales of Nokia smartphones was reported. Recently, Nokia had issued a fourth quarter update and preliminary guidance for 2009 which stated:
"In the last few weeks, the global economic slowdown, combined with unprecedented currency volatility, has resulted in a sharp pull back in global consumer spending."
While the major handset manufacturers come out with smartphones with higher prices, like Sony Ericsson's Xperia X1, consumers refrain from emptying their wallet. Though the major players have queued up with their upcoming handsets to be introduced globally, they're planning for more 'affordable' or 'wallet friendly' handsets for the Indian public. But will their strategy of shifting focus to rural markets help them? We'd like to hear what you've to say on that.
Source: Economic Times
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cell bhakta
,hell, on Apr 14, 2011 10:53 AM
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Rihaan khan
,Anantnag, on Feb 11, 2009 01:23 PM
subho
,calcutta, on Jan 31, 2009 12:20 PM
Anup
,Bangalore, on Nov 20, 2008 11:55 AM
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