Sony gunning for top three position in Indian smartphone market
Electronics giant Sony is looking to broaden its
reach in the Indian smartphone market. The Japanese company has today
said that it is aiming to feature among the top three smartphone players
in the Indian market within a year. While talking about this, Tadato
Kimura, Consumer Unit Head (Mobile Division) at Sony India, told
reporters that, “We want to be among the top three players by next year.”
The key to Sony’s successful ascension, according to the company, lies in the Xperia range of smartphones. To that end, the company is looking to increase the revenue contribution from its smartphones line-up to equal the flagship Bravia television range by next year, Kimura said. Looking at the revenue sheets, it should be noted that the Bravia range pulls in about 35 percent of Sony India’s total sales.
While talking about the current figures, Kimura said that Sony India has around 7.5 percent market share in terms of volume in the smartphone category, and the company is selling around 1.5 lakh devices monthly on an average.
The company is aiming to expand on that by consistently introducing new products in each price segment every month. So far, the cheapest Sony model in the market is the Xperia Tipo, which is priced at about Rs 7,000. But the company is not focusing on the lower-price range category, instead shifting its resources to concentrate more on the premium segment (above Rs 30,000). While talking about the premium segment, the Sony India executive said that the company enjoys around 13 percent market share in the fore-mentioned category. Adding to his statement, Kimura said, “We want to become the top player in the premium segment with around 30 percent market share in a year.”
The company, for now, seems to be steering clear of the tablet segment. The rationale behind the move is clear, though. The Sony executive firmly stated that the market in India is mostly driven by low-cost devices, and it does not have any products in that price range.
Rationalising the company’s stance, Kimura said, “We want affluent consumers who want to enjoy technology. The tablet market in India is low cost driven and we have no interest at all in that segment… we are aggressive in smartphones.”
The most recent smartphone that Sony recently launched to strengthening its smartphone portfolio is the Xperia Z Ultra. The device, which the company has termed as the slimmest full HD smartphone, comes with a hefty price tag of Rs 46,990. Looking at the specifications, the smartphone sports a 6.4 inch display screen and a 2.2 GHz Quad Core processor. While the company seems to be making all the right moves, it may take Sony some time to get into the top three category in the smartphone market.
The key to Sony’s successful ascension, according to the company, lies in the Xperia range of smartphones. To that end, the company is looking to increase the revenue contribution from its smartphones line-up to equal the flagship Bravia television range by next year, Kimura said. Looking at the revenue sheets, it should be noted that the Bravia range pulls in about 35 percent of Sony India’s total sales.
While talking about the current figures, Kimura said that Sony India has around 7.5 percent market share in terms of volume in the smartphone category, and the company is selling around 1.5 lakh devices monthly on an average.
Sony's latest launch into the premium smartphone category, the Xperia Z Ultra
The company is aiming to expand on that by consistently introducing new products in each price segment every month. So far, the cheapest Sony model in the market is the Xperia Tipo, which is priced at about Rs 7,000. But the company is not focusing on the lower-price range category, instead shifting its resources to concentrate more on the premium segment (above Rs 30,000). While talking about the premium segment, the Sony India executive said that the company enjoys around 13 percent market share in the fore-mentioned category. Adding to his statement, Kimura said, “We want to become the top player in the premium segment with around 30 percent market share in a year.”
The company, for now, seems to be steering clear of the tablet segment. The rationale behind the move is clear, though. The Sony executive firmly stated that the market in India is mostly driven by low-cost devices, and it does not have any products in that price range.
Rationalising the company’s stance, Kimura said, “We want affluent consumers who want to enjoy technology. The tablet market in India is low cost driven and we have no interest at all in that segment… we are aggressive in smartphones.”
The most recent smartphone that Sony recently launched to strengthening its smartphone portfolio is the Xperia Z Ultra. The device, which the company has termed as the slimmest full HD smartphone, comes with a hefty price tag of Rs 46,990. Looking at the specifications, the smartphone sports a 6.4 inch display screen and a 2.2 GHz Quad Core processor. While the company seems to be making all the right moves, it may take Sony some time to get into the top three category in the smartphone market.
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