Apple iPhone Sales Increase By 400 Percent In India

Apple iPhone sales throughout India have increased by 400 percent since January 2013. According to a report from a Credit Suisse analyst, the company is selling around 400,000 iPhones per month in the country, the equivalent of a 300 to 400 percent increase in iPhone orders.

Based on those numbers, Apple only trails Samsung in terms of overall sales in the country. Samsung, however, offers a much larger range of devices in India, including entry-level smartphones and feature phones which attract less well-to-do buyers.

According to analyst Sunil Tirumalai in a note to investors, Apple has changed its iPhone image in India by offering discounts, trade-in programs, and equal monthly payment (EMI) plans that have made the iPhone seem more reasonably priced for buyers in India.

Based on current estimates, Apple now controls around three percent of India’s handset market, not a bad sum in a country where feature and low-end phones still dominate the landscape.

Before announcing discounts and new payment plan types, Apple was suffering through 70,000 to 80,000 device sales per month.

Apple started the EMIs program for its iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S models. The program requires a small down payment and then equal payments with no interest for 12 months.

The Apple campaign was so aggressive that Samsung and other competitors followed suit in order to fend off Apple’s aggressive pricing and payment options.

Apple’s advertising has definitely worked in terms of smartphone sales. Taking feature phones out of the mix Apple went from a 3.9 percent to 15.6 percent share of the smartphone-only market versus the previous quarter.

The Apple iPhone 4 is currently outselling the Apple iPhone 5 in India, likely due to the price differences between the two smartphones.

Also joining in on the aggressive discount programs and EMIs are Nokia and Blackberry, two companies that have traditionally done very well in India.

Do you think Apple can continue to grab market share in India by aggressively discounting its devices and offering monthly payment plans?