New Delhi: Apple revealed its second quarter results which showed a drop in revenue for the first time in 13 years for the Cupertino giant on account of slowing iPhone sales. Apple’s revenue stood at $50.6 billion, registering a decline of 9 per cent.
While iPhone sales in China and the more developed markets have slowed down, India currently appears as a ray of hope for the company, with over 56 per cent increase in sales of the iPhone. No wonder, Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO believes India is a potential growth driver for the company facing signs of gloom otherwise.
Here’s a quick look at the top five statements that Tim Cook made on India:
56 per cent growth in India sales: "On emerging markets, if you take a look at India we grew by 56 per cent. We are placing increasing emphasis in these areas, where it’s clear there will be disproportionate growth versus the more developed areas," said the Apple CEO in the earnings call. The 56 per cent growth is big if it is compared to China, which is considered as one of the most important markets for Apple that saw a decline in iPhone sales.
Also read: Slow networks in India preventing Apple from full bloom: Tim Cook
On 4G and good networks to boost iPhone sales: Cook said while India is the third-largest smartphone market in the world, it is dominated by "low-end" smartphones primarily because of the network and the economics due to which "the market potential has not been as great there." However, things are being sorted with LTE rollout in the country. Cook said, "We'll begin to see some really good networks coming on in India. That will unleash the power and capability of the iPhone in a way that an older network, a 2.5G or even some 3G networks, would not do."
Working on distribution channel: According to Tim Cook, the distribution channels an important key to doing well in the Indian market. Talking about distribution channel, Cook said, "Unlike the US, as an example, where the carriers in the US sell the vast majority of phones that are sold in the United States, in India the carriers in general sell virtually no phones. And so it's out in retail, and retail is many, many different small shops."
India is the next China for Apple: Cook said that he believes that India is currently at a point where China was in terms of network and market economics seven to ten years ago and the company has great opportunity in the country. "We've been working in India now for a couple of years or more, but we've been working with great energy over the last 18 months or so, and I'm encouraged by the results that we're beginning to see there, and believe there's a lot, lot more there," Apple CEO added.
India is growing at a fast pace: Even though iPhone sales have slowed down, Cook said he is positive about India’s growth. He said that India is going play a key role in growing the sales of iPhones. He added, "We're placing increasing emphasis in these areas, where it's clear there will be disproportionate growth versus the more developed areas."
