Nokia maker HMD to launch own-branded smartphones in India next year: VP India
HMD Global, the company behind Nokia phones, will be launching its own branded smartphones in the first half of next year, Ravi Kunwar, vice president, India and Asia-Pacific, said in a media interaction on Wednesday. As part of the India-first strategy, the company is expected to launch the smartphones in India first, before making them available in other markets.Comments from Kunwar came a month after HMD Global CEO Jean-Francois Baril said the company will be introducing a new portfolio of HMD branded mobile devices, along with Nokia devices. HMD has been making Nokia phones through different contract manufacturers for the last seven years. The company, in 2016, had signed an exclusive 10-year licensing agreement with Nokia to create and market Nokia-branded smartphones and tablets.“It is safe to say that anywhere between quarter 1 (January-March) and quarter 2 (April-June) of next year, we expect the devices to be available in India,” Kunwar said, adding that India will be a key priority market for HMD-branded devices.
HMD’s plans to launch its own branded devices, including smartphones, feature phones, and tablets, is seen as a strategy to independently foray into the devices market as presently there is no clarity whether its licence with Nokia that is going to expire in 2026, will be renewed or not.
On launching own-branded phones, simultaneously with Nokia, Kunwar said, “There is enough and more consumer space, where we believe a lot of value can be added to a certain set of consumers who are not looking at the kind of value which we are giving with a certain brand right now”.
The company expects the consumers to shift to its own set of devices from its competitors going forward. The new HMD-branded smartphones will be available across points.
Similar to its Nokia phones, HMD will loop in contract manufacturer partners – Foxconn, Dixon Technologies, and Lava, to manufacture its own-branded devices in the country.
According to analysts, Nokia currently has a miniscule share in the Indian smartphone segment but has an 11% market share in the feature phone segment.
On Wednesday, HMD Global also launched its device financing program, HMD Easy Pay, in partnership with DMI Finance. Through its easy financing scheme, the company expects to increase 25-30% sales of Nokia smartphones.“As an organisation, we look at various levers to provide to the consumers to drive sales. Consumer financing, from an affordability perspective, is one such lever and that will definitely help in terms of growth,” Kunwar said.
HMD’s financing scheme is currently available at around 4,000 retail outlets pan India. The scheme is currently available on four smartphone devices – Nokia G42, C32, C22, and C12 Pro, the company said.