Motorola to stick with online-only sales model

As smartphones are gaining traction in the country the company wants to capitalise on app-based sales

Motorola Mobility, the Chicago-headquartered smartphone manufacturer, has no plan to offer its handsets through brick and mortar outlets in the country.

The company re-entered the India market in February last year and is putting its faith on the reach of e-commerce. As smartphones are gaining traction in the country, Motorola is sticking to its online-only product offering strategy, to capitalise on app-based sales.

Since its re-launch here, Motorola has sold about 5.6 million smartphones through Flipkart, its exclusive channel partner. Amit Boni, general manager, Motorola Mobility India, said they are currently focusing on strengthening the after-sales services and not looking for other channel partners. "We have done phenomenally in the past one and a half years," he said. "Seventy per cent of the population is between 16 and 40 years of age, who are pretty comfortable in online purchases. The e-commerce sales model has worked out well for us here. And, we will stick to it."

After its acquisition by Google in 2012, Motorola phones were discontinued in India. Smartphones from the company reappeared in the country after Chinese electronics major Lenovo bought Motorola last year.

According to an IDC report, of the 26.4 million smartphones shipped in India, Lenovo (including Motorola) had six per cent market share in the April-June quarter. While Boni did not reveal Motorola's revenue or profit, the share of its smartphones in Lenovo's kitty is nearly half, he indicated.