The tumult in the Indian handset market
Chinese handset makers Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo now have over 50% marketshare in India. The biggest casualty has been Indian companies, namely Micromax, Lava and Intex which have seen their share go down from 40% to 14%. Their mistakes include not coming up with 4G models fast enough (a customer need driven by Jio) and subscribing to the myth that the Indian consumer goes for the cheapest option in the market. In reality, customers in India were interested in the best value-for-money phones. This was provided by the new set of smartphones from Chinese companies who read their needs better and came equipped with smartphones that incorporated high-powered cameras with high resolution and larger screens. So alarming has been the advance of the Chinese brigade that calls have gone out for some form of protection for domestic companies. The government has paid heed, although its help may be coming too late. Starting 1 July, India imposed a 10% basic customs duty on smartphones. More here .