According to a new report, the Indian smartphone market is now showing reassuring signs of stimulation that sets it on a potential course for market recovery for over 40 per cent in the second half this year, after going through disruptions in supply chain and curtailed domestic production. The mobile market will improve in mid-Q3, spurred by early online sales festivals over the short-term, setting the smartphone market on a potential path to retrieval towards the all-important festive season. During this period, focusing more on hyperlocal delivery models, smartphone brands will focus on showcasing their consumer-centric value propositions. According to market research firm CMR\’s \’India Mobile Handset Market Review Report\’, they will be launching more 5G-ready smartphones.
With the market expected to recover by more than 40 per cent in comparison to the first half, CMR\’s current estimates point to a better performance for the India smartphone market in H2 2020. Amit Sharma, Manager-Industry Intelligence Group, CMR said, \”As a consequence of the pandemic, Q2 2020 was, in essence, a lost quarter. While the mobile handset industry faced multiple challenges with respect to their supply and demand side dynamics, the industry looks set on the path to a potential recovery in the coming months.\”
The urgent need for replacements and online channels predominantly drove the initial consumer demand in the unlock phase. Sharma added that, \”Facing up to the pandemic, smartphone brands debuted innovative hyperlocal delivery models, some of which have the potential to gain permanence.\” Pent-up consumer demand will lead the path to potential recovery, driven by need for advancements. Consumers will seek to go for meaningful value propositions that bring devices and convincing content ecosystem offerings, together in the run-up to the festive season.
Sharma said, \”This, coupled by smartphone brands bringing more value for money offerings and backed by aggressive messaging, will potentially drive the market.\” Hence, a key challenge for the smartphone market in India to grow has been the incapacity to offer value schemes that will help feature phone users to drift to smartphones. Analyst Anand Priya Singh said, \”We believe recent announcements, such as the Jio-Google deal, augur well for the future of the mobile handset industry in India, and in potentially enabling the migration of feature phones to smartphone users, with its focus on driving affordability.\”