Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) aims to grow its share of India’s smartphone and gaming laptop markets by focusing on mid-to-higher-priced handsets and opening exclusive gaming shops in the country, a company executive said.
Asustek, which entered the Indian smartphone market in 2014, commands 2.5 percent of the South Asian country’s handset market and aims to push its share to 5 percent before the end of this year, the Hindu Business Line newspaper on Friday last week quoted Asustek regional head and country manager Peter Chang (張旗浚) as saying.
In the report, Chang cited international researchers who said that 23.6 million smartphones were sold in India in the first quarter of this year, with smartphones priced between 10,000 rupees and 15,000 rupees (US$148.63 and US$222.94) being more popular than budget phones.
Statistics showed that the average selling price of a smartphone in India in the first three months of this year was 12,983 rupees, a 25.27 percent increase from 10,364 rupees in the same period last year, he added.
To catch this trend, Chang said Asustek would continue to target the 10,000 to 15,000 rupee price bracket, while also competing in the 20,000 rupees and above bracket by introducing its new generation of ZenFone smartphones next month.
Asustek sells about 200,000 smartphones per month in India and aims to double the shipments to 400,000 units per month before December, following the introduction of new handsets later this year, the company said.
“This will give us the scope to double our market share and sales in India this year,” Chang said.
Asustek’s new flagship smartphone series, the ZenFone 3, was unveiled early last month. The new models are scheduled to hit the Taiwanese market on Tuesday next week and to launch in India and Southeast Asian countries next month, the firm said.
In addition to the company’s efforts in the Indian handset market, Chang said Asustek is eyeing to increase its gaming notebook market share in the country from 30 percent this year to 50 percent next year.
Chang said Asustek plans to open its second exclusive gaming store in India this week, after opening its first exclusive Republic of Gamers store on Friday last week.
Eyeing the huge growth potential for gaming notebooks in India, Chang said Asustek plans to open a total of five Republic of Gamers stores and 200 gaming-focused stores in India this year.
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