Apple Stops Selling Lower-Cost iPhones in India

[MacRumors]

Apple has reportedly stopped selling iPhone SE, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and iPhone 6s Plus in India, meaning anyone in the market for a new Apple smartphone will have to shell out more for a later model.

According to The Economic Times, the strategy indicates Apple is no longer prioritizing shifting iPhones in the country by volume and is instead refocusing efforts on increasing its revenue there.

To that end, Apple's distributors in India are said to be informing retailers that supplies of the above iPhone models have stopped and the new "entry-level" iPhone will be the iPhone 6s. This will increase the starting price of an iPhone in India by almost Rs 8,000 (around $116).

Apple has been assembling the iPhone SE in India as well as the iPhone 6s and iPhone 7 over the last couple of years. Given the shift in strategy, idle capacity in these factories may now be used to expand production of other models, according to the report.

The decision is said to have been taken after Apple improved its revenue and profit in India by 12 percent over the last year, despite selling less iPhones than the previous year. Apple India's sales in the April-June quarter went up after it brought in a promotion to drop iPhone XR prices.

"Cupertino does not want Apple India to chase volumes by discounting at the cost of profit," said one leading trade partner of Apple. "These models which are being phased out will increase the average selling price of iPhones in India and boost both profit and revenue." Apple India declined to comment on the matter.

In the Indian market, Apple ranks 11th and accounts for just one percent of India's phone sales, and sold fewer than one million iPhones during the first half of 2018. Comparatively, rival smartphone maker Xiaomi sold more than 19 million during that period, according to data gathered by Counterpoint Research.

According to a recent report, Apple CEO Tim Cook is believed to be working behind the scenes to "remold Apple's failing India strategy," in bid to revamp the company's presence there.

Apple has also been re-focusing efforts in India in hopes of expanding production outside of China in the wake of the ongoing trade war between the United States and China. Last summer, Apple detailed a new India strategy with official retail stores, overhauled relationships with independent retailers, more frequent sales, and improved apps and services.

Some of these plans have started to come to fruition, as Apple has now finalized a list of locations for its first retail store in India.

Article Link: Apple Stops Selling Lower-Cost iPhones in India

 

[velocityg4]

I wonder why Apple doesn't just make low cost models for these markets? Rather than trying to hock old models at lower prices. Something like a Nokia 7.1 or Moto One and sell them at $350. They'll still have their high profit margin and people may be more apt to buy a new model than a four year old model.

 

[Pelea]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

 

[orbital~debris]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

What are you on about?

 

[hasek3139]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

Why? most the the people there don't have as much money as everywhere else. hence why apple sells so much less there, and other companies sell 19 million phones because of their lower price point... you must not travel much lol

 

[BootsWalking]

I guess Apple isn'f getting much service revenue from India, otherwise you'd expect them to accept lower hardware revenue in exchange for the potential of huge services revenue in a country with such a large population.

 

[velocityg4]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

What cheap prices? They are paying high prices for old models. $430 for an iPhone 6s. I can get those used for $130 on eBay. I could pick up a used iPhone 8 for those prices. I'm sure there are a lot more iPhones in India than Apple's sales indicate. They're just buying used models from around the world.

 

[windywalks]

I don't get it.
They're discontinuing the 6s Plus but will continue to sell the 6s?
Either the wording is imprecise, or Apple is making a curious decision eschewing the Plus size model along with the 6 series.

 

[PickUrPoison]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

You misread the article. The price isn’t $116; the lowest priced available phone increased by $116.

But even so, your post still doesn’t make any sense, so there’s that....

 

[Ballis]

Just in preparation for a huge pricedrop coming september.

 

[now i see it]

well they can hardly continue selling a 4 year old design that won't even work with the newest OS

 

[PickUrPoison]

I don't get it.
They're discontinuing the 6s Plus but will continue to sell the 6s?
Either the wording is imprecise, or Apple is making a curious decision eschewing the Plus size model along with the 6 series.

If someone wants a larger (than 4.7”) iPhone, they’re going to have to fork out for at least a 7 Plus.

6s is the new SE, i.e. the smallest, and least expensive iPhone available.

 

[Mike MA]

Well, seing those numbers Apple probably could increase both market share and revenue/margin if the product is working out - not neither nor.

 

[Paradoxally]

iPhone is DBA (dead before arrival) in India: they are very price conscious so they'll almost always pick a cheap Android phone. Xiaomi is usually the most popular.

 

[BigBoy2018]

The SE must not be selling very well in India. Ironically, my guess is there would be a solid minority of buyers who would love to still get an SE in the U.S.

I wonder what the sales ‘threshold’ is (in units solds) for Apple to continue offering a certain product for sale.

 

[one more]

Considering the prices, iPhone is a luxury in India, even the “cheaper” models by the Western standards. Very few Indians able to afford it would not be stopped by additional 116$. Apple just cannot compete with more affordable Android phones there on a large scale, so they are essentially giving up.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

iPhone is DBA (dead before arrival) in India: they are very price conscious so they'll almost always pick a cheap Android phone. Xiaomi is usually the most popular.

It’s more than just the price. They prefer brands from companies based in Asia rather than the United States or the Commonwealth countries.

There is still lingering resentment from the years of British oppression they lived through. In the case of the United States it’s guilt by association because the USA originated from British colonies.

 

[darngooddesign]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

Can we assume you paid the Australian price for your iPhone; so you wouldn’t take advantage of Apple?

 

[Slash787]

There are so many phones in India which are as good or better than iPhone's and they sell at 50% less than the price of Iphone.

Apple really needs to release an SE 2 Full screen as big as the current SE or iPhone 6/7/8 and have internals of the iPhone XS or the upcoming 11. That would be the perfect thing.

 

[windywalks]

Can we assume you paid the Australian price for your iPhone; so you wouldn’t take advantage of Apple?

Better yet - Brazilian price
[doublepost=1563285788][/doublepost]

If someone wants a larger (than 4.7”) iPhone, they’re going to have to fork out for at least a 7 Plus.

The 6s is the new SE, i.e. the smallest, and least expensive iPhone available.

I had a passing thought like that, but I just wasn't sure if my reasoning was correct.
This won't help the iPhone's position in India at all.

 

[travelsheep]

I wouldn't mind an iPhone XS for $600, but hey, according to some users here we Westerners are rich, we deserve to pay!

 

[calstanford]

India is a lost market for Apple. I wonder why they bother. India is bottom of the barrel Android phones. Yea Xiaomi sells a lot, but not their mi mix3s or mi9 but their mid-range $250 type devices and lower.

 

[code-m]

iPhone is DBA (dead before arrival) in India: they are very price conscious so they'll almost always pick a cheap Android phone. Xiaomi is usually the most popular.

Or the feature set is comparable, one can receive a free Xiaomi or low priced latest tech compared to Apple that is higher priced and years old. Purchasing a 4 year phone does not make sense for longevity if you are spending more only to have support dropped.

Popular app usage is WhatsApp not messages, why spend more on the same experience. Even with the better performing Ax and iOS memory management, one would not notice much while using WhatsApp.

If anything an iPhone would just be seen as a status symbol, and no one want to sport a 4 year phone as status it is an oxymoron purchase.
[doublepost=1563288326][/doublepost]

I wouldn't mind an iPhone XS for $600, but hey, according to some users here we Westerners are rich, we deserve to pay!

Need to be informed of how the present world operates.

 

[trillionaire]

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

I may be wrong, but it seems to me that the sarcasm in your post may have been missed by most of the people replying to it. Unless I'm the one misunderstanding it.

 

[Shirasaki]

I wonder why Apple doesn't just make low cost models for these markets? Rather than trying to hock old models at lower prices. Something like a Nokia 7.1 or Moto One and sell them at $350. They'll still have their high profit margin and people may be more apt to buy a new model than a four year old model.

They need to engineer a new budget phone, cost money. They need to produce those phones, cost money. They have to maintain a ridiculous amount of profit margins, cost sales.
It makes the most sense for Apple to simply sell older models for “cheap” than trying to design a new phone with moderate specs. Also, even if the device is new, the chip inside is clearly a couple years old, because device Price is slow.

Excellent News. India should not be taking advantage of Apple by buying iPhones At such cheap prices. They should pay as much as any other country!

I am pretty sure you are not average Indian, or not Indian at all, And won’t give a f of how painful it is to live in India.
Also, you are pretty much the only reason why people in certain countries won’t get Apple Music because of the service cost, assuming Apple Music is available.