How Chinese manufacturers dominate price conscious Indian smartphone market

Brands like Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo, Honor and OnePlus remain the strong contenders in terms of smartphone shipments, according to reports by IDC and Counterpoint

While different reports are stating different companies as India’s leading smartphone manufacturer, there is one common underlying element that these reports highlight i.e. the Chinese brands continue to dominate the country’s smartphone market. According to market analysis reports by IDC and Counterpoint for second quarter of this year, brands like Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo continues to be in the list of top five smartphone brands in the country. Not just that, other brands such as Huawei’s Honor and OnePlus have also shown staggering growth in a price conscious India’s smartphone market.

According to IDC report, Xiaomi continues to lead the India’s smartphone market, beating the South Korean electronics giant Samsung in second quarter this year. However, a recent report by Counterpoint shows a contradicting view. According to Counterpoint, Samsung regained the smartphone leadership title in the second quarter of this year. Though it is complex to comprehend which brand rules the country’s smartphone market, it is note that both reports highlight that Xiaomi shipments grew around 100 per cent year-over-year.

According to Counterpoint, the company’s market share grew to 28 per cent market share in the quarter from 16 per cent in the same quarter last year. However, according to IDC, the company’s market share grew to 29.7 per cent in the quarter from 17.2 per cent last year in same quarter.

Counterpoint attributed Xiaomi’s growth to its strong product and supply chain strategy that has allowed it to launch products with a longer shelf life than its competitors in the sub-Rs 10,000 segment.

The reports also highlight that the market share of other Chinese brands like Vivo and Oppo has not shown much growth, yet they continue to hold the third and fourth position in India’s smartphone market, respectively. According to Counterpoint, Vivo shipments increased due to new launches, celebrity endorsement and aggressive campaign around IPL 2018. During the quarter, Oppo also launched its sub-brand Realme in a bid to increase its online presence that managed to grab 1 per cent share of the total smartphone market due to strong perceived value-for-money, unique industrial design and positive customer feedback for its initial model.

On the other hand, brands like Huawei’s Honor continued to show impressive growth. According to IDC, in the online segment, Huawei with strong shipments of its Honor branded phones, climbed to the second position with an all-time high of 8 per cent share in online segment in 2Q18.

“Huawei has had a stellar quarter worldwide moving into the second position, toppling Apple. In India, with a refreshed focus it has been able to grow its share in the online space in the last two quarters, on the back of several new launches across price segments.” Added the IDC report.

In premium segment, OnePlus managed to outperform Samsung and Apple in the same quarter. According to Counterpoint, the premium smartphone segment (Rs 30,000 and above) grew 19 per cent annually and 10 per cent sequentially during Q2 2018. Out of this, OnePlus controlled 40 per cent.

“The steady focus on high-end flagship smartphones and unprecedented community connect helped OnePlus earn user trust and spread brand awareness through word of mouth," said Neil Shah, Partner and Research Director, IoT, Mobile and Ecosystems, Counterpoint Research.