Apple has announced its latest quarter earnings report, and it seems the launch of iPhone 11 and price cuts on iPhone XR has delivered positive results for the brand.
The Cupertino-based giant registered double-digit growth in India for iPhones in the holiday quarter (October-December period), the company's CEO Tim Cook has announced on Wednesday.
This growth was reported in emerging markets like Brazil, India and Thailand among others, Cook mentioned during his call with the analysts. Globally, he said the revenue from iPhones in the holiday quarter was $56 billion.
Industry reports point out Apple became one of the fastest-growing brands in India in the fourth quarter of 2019, capturing 2 percent market share with a year-on-year growth of 41 per cent.
One would say the market share is still a fairly small portion of the country’s smartphone segment, which is currently lead by Xiaomi, followed by Samsung and then you’ve got the likes of Vivo, Oppo and Realme in the mix.
Pricing has always been the big pain point for buyers who looked at other brands as alternatives, something that’s worked to a good effect for brands like OnePlus. But with the iPhone XR price cut, and additional bank discounts on the table, buyers couldn’t hold themselves from finally getting a chance to use Apple’s popular phone.
“While first half of 2019 was relatively slower for Apple, the company managed to find growth in the second half, on the back of price drops on previous-generation iPhone models (iPhone XR, 7, 8).”Navkendar Singh, Research Director, IDC India
The likes of Counterpoint of IDC have repeatedly stated the iPhone XR has been one of the best-selling phones over the past few quarters, and that impact has become evident with Apple’s quarterly results.
The company hasn’t exactly given the reason for pricing the iPhone 11 aggressively in India, but whichever you look at it, the phone has been out of stock with most retailers, even though we don’t know the exact number of units shipped by Apple to the country.
“Increased local manufacturing, aggressive and prudent pricing, and a reworked channel strategy, helped Apple attain market success. The iPhone 11 along with the iPhone XR together accounted for 16 per cent of Apple’s shipments in the calendar year 2019.”Prabhu Ram, Head, Industry Intelligence Group (IIG), CMR.
It remains to be seen if Apple’s results from the Indian market in the last quarter encourages the brand to replicate the same formula for its future product launches as well.
(With IANS inputs)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)