How Chinese manufacturers dominate price conscious Indian smartphone market

While different reports are stating different companies as India’s leading smartphone manufacturer, there is one common underlying element that these reports highlight i.e. the Chinese brands continue to dominate the country’s smartphone market. According to market analysis reports by IDC and Counterpoint for second quarter of this year, brands like Xiaomi, Vivo and Oppo continues to be in the list of top five smartphone brands in the country. Not just that, other brands such as Huawei’s Honor and OnePlus have also shown staggering growth in a price conscious India’s smartphone market.

According to IDC report, Xiaomi continues to lead the India’s smartphone market, beating the South Korean electronics giant Samsung in second quarter this year. However, a recent report by Counterpoint shows a contradicting view. According to Counterpoint, Samsung regained the smartphone leadership title in the second quarter of this year. Though it is complex to comprehend which brand rules the country’s smartphone market, it is note that both reports highlight that Xiaomi shipments grew around 100 per cent year-over-year.

Here's how China's Huawei, Oppo are challenging Apple, Samsung's dominance

Apple and Samsung’s domination of the smartphone world is being challenged like never before, with Chinese companies muscling in with cheaper and just as innovative devices.
In an ominous sign for the tech titans - whose iPhone and Galaxy handsets have had a stranglehold on the almost $500 billion market for years -- China’s Huawei Technologies Co. has unseated Apple to become the world’s second-largest smartphone maker. Now, it’s setting its sights on No. 1 Samsung, which has seen disappointing profits as Chinese phones gain share of a market that looks increasingly like it has peaked.

And others are not far behind. Here are the players -- and phones -- to watch:

Huawei: The Big Threat

Based in the southern Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen, Huawei is ploughing cash into bolstering its phones’ camera capabilities in a quest to dominate. Its flagship P20 Pro boasts a three-lens camera that was co-engineered with the 104-year-old German camera maker Leica. Huawei also offers a shiny, rainbow-effect handset finish known as Twilight, differentiating their product from the many monotone smartphones on the market.

Samsung to introduce Bixby 2.0 to take on Google Assistant, Siri

South Korean technology major Samsung will introduce the second edition of its voice-powered digital assistant 'Bixby' next year that will work on multiple devices, including televisions and refrigerators, a top company official said on Thursday.

This will help the global smartphone leader further strengthen its position against companies like Google, Apple and Amazon that also have virtual assistants -- Google Assistant, Siri and Alexa, respectively.

"We would introduce Bixby 2.0 in 2018... it would be designed to be available on any and all devices," Samsung Electronics V-P, Mobile Communications Business, Ji Soo Yi told reporters here.

He added that "this means having the intelligence of Bixby act as the control hub of device ecosystem, including mobile phones, TVs, refrigerators...".

Bixby 2.0 would have "one work on one platform" command structure and would integrate all operating systems like Android and Samsung's Tizen.

However, Yi did not divulge the month of the planned launch of the new version of the voice assistance software.

Named after a bridge in California, US, Samsung had introduced Bixby in May this year globally on its premium smartphones like Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8 Plus and Note 8.

Asked whether Samsung would extend Bixby to other Samsung phones, Yi said: "Yes, we would."
READ MORE

Super Bowl promo: Muhammad Ali Enterprises sues Fox for $30 million

Muhammad Ali Enterprises is suing the Fox Broadcasting Company for more than $30 million for what it says was Fox's unauthorized use of the famed boxer's image in a video that ran just before its broadcast of the 2017 Super Bowl.
The federal lawsuit filed in Chicago comes two years after a federal jury awarded $8.9 million to basketball legend Michael Jordan in his suit against the owners of a defunct supermarket chain for using his identity in an advertisement without permission.

Last year, soccer great Pele filed a similar $30 million lawsuit against the electronics company Samsung.
The suit contends that Fox used Ali's "name, image and likeness as the centrepiece" of a video for its Super Bowl broadcast.
Ali died last year.
Fox declined to comment.

Samsung bites into Apple in India: Galaxy Note8 sales beat iPhone 8

Samsung Galaxy Note8 that came to India last month and saw over 250,000 registrations within no time is selling like hot cakes and has left Apple iPhone 8 and 8 Plus behind in the race at the moment, industry sources said on Wednesday.

According to dealers, Galaxy Note8 sales are ahead when compared to iPhone8 and 8 Plus.
"For every 100 Galaxy Note8 being purchased, 60-70 iPhone8 and iPhone 8 Plus are being sold," a south Delhi-based dealer told IANS on the condition of anonymity.

According to Tarun Pathak, Associate Director, Mobile Devices and Ecosystems, Counterpoint Research, the fight between Note8 and IPhone8 is finally going to be pretty close.

"We are looking at a neck-to-neck fight. What changes iPhone X will make to the scenario is yet to be seen but at the moment, Note8 is doing good in India and Apple users are waiting for iPhone X to arrive," Pathak told IANS.

Indian smartphone users have reiterated that lack of innovation, coupled with high prices of iPhone devices, stopped them from buying iPhone8 and 8Plus.
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Samsung voice-assistant Bixby to debut with new Galaxy S8 smartphone

Samsung announced on Monday that a voice-powered digital assistant named "Bixby" will debut with a flagship Galaxy S8 smartphone set to be unveiled by the South Korean consumer electronics giant.

Bixby enters a crowded field of digital assistants powered by artificial intelligence that includes Apple's Siri, Google Assistant, Microsoft Cortana and Amazon's Alexa.

Samsung said Bixby will focus on letting people control mobile apps with spoken directives.

"Bixby will be our first step on a journey to completely open up new ways of interacting with your phone," Samsung Electronics head of research and development Injong Rhee said in a release.

"Bixby will be a new intelligent interface on our devices."

A Galaxy S8 smartphone expected to be unveiled next week will have a set of pre-installed applications that will work with Bixby, according to Samsung.

Samsung late last year bought Viv, an artificial intelligence startup with co-founders who were part of the team that built virtual assistant Siri, which Apple bought some seven years ago.

Bixby will differ from digital aides already on the market in ways that include controlling nearly all tasks in applications instead of limited sets, and being flexible when it comes to understanding what users are saying, according to Samsung.

"We do have a bold vision of revolutionizing the human-to-machine interface, but that vision won't be realised overnight," Rhee said.

Amazon, Apple, Samsung, Google and Microsoft are all vying to develop the most sophisticated connected assistant -- working to give software the ability to understand what people say and even anticipate desires or needs.

Amazon virtual assistant Alexa was a star at the Consumer Electronics Show gadget gala early this year in Las Vegas but faces fierce competition.

Chinese giant Baidu also used the show to showcase virtual assistant "Little Fish" that it was preparing for a debut in China.

Microsoft recently bought Maluuba, a Montreal startup focused on making machines able to think the way people do. (READ MORE)

Samsung stocks plunge after arrest of heir over corruption scandal

Latest News - South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics' stock price plunged on Friday after it was announced that its vice president and heir to the business conglomerate was arrested over his alleged role in a corruption scandal.

Samsung Electronics, one of the stocks that holds the greatest weight in the Seoul Stock Exchange, opened with a sharp decline, hitting 0.60 per cent, and by 9.30 a.m., was down 0.47 per cent to stand at 1.892 million won ($1,653), Efe news reported.

Earlier in the day, Seoul Central District Court authorised Lee Jae-yong's arrest after "new charges and evidence" were presented.

Following the order, the 48-year-old tycoon was immediately arrested and (Read More)

Apple topples Samsung as No 1 in smartphone market: Gartner

Latest News - Apple toppled Samsung as numero uno player in the global smartphone market with 17.9 per cent share in the December quarter, research firm Gartner said on Wednesday.

The October-December quarter of last year — which clocked 7 per cent year-on-year growth in overall sales to 432 million units — saw Samsung finish second with a market share of 17.8 per cent.

For 2016 overall, smartphone sales to end users totalled nearly 1.5 billion units, an increase of 5 per cent from 2015.

"This is the second consecutive quarter in which Samsung has delivered falling quarterly (Read More)

Samsung blames Galaxy Note 7 fires on faulty batteries

Latest News - The world's biggest smartphone maker Samsung blamed faulty batteries today for the fires that led to last year's humiliating recall of its flagship Galaxy Note 7 device.

Internal and independent investigations "concluded that batteries were found to be the cause of the Note 7 incidents", the South Korean company said in a statement.

The giant conglomerate was forced to discontinue the smartphone -- originally intended to compete with Apple's iPhone -- after a chaotic recall that saw replacement devices also catching fire.

The debacle cost the company billions in (Read More)

Samsung launches Galaxy C9 Pro, bets on subsequent buyers to drive sales

The country's largest smartphone maker, Samsung India, is betting big on second- and third-time smartphone buyers to drive sales of its newly launched Galaxy C9 Pro.

"We do innovations keeping consumers in mind. We are confident that the launch of Galaxy C9 Pro will revolutionalise the market. It is actually targeting second- and third-time buyers who are looking for new upgrades. We are confident that it will drive our market share up", said Aditya Babbar, deputy general manager, mobile business, Samsung India, at the national launch of Galaxy C9 Pro here.

"India is the second largest smartphone market. Definitely, will be new buyers coming in and (existing) consumer upgrading. The upgrader is the biggest market and we are targeting it," he added.

Priced at Rs 36,900, the Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro will be available in two colours -- black and gold.

Interested buyers can pre-book the device through select stores and online channels from January 27 and avail the pre-booking offer of one-time screen replacement for a period of 12 months.

The smartphone will be on sale at all retail channels in the latter half of February 2017.(Read More)

Alibaba joins big brands like Samsung, Sony, others to fight fake goods

Latest News -China's e-commerce giant Alibaba today joined hands with 20 brands to fight counterfeit goods through big data analysis after the US last month labelled the company as one of the world's largest destinations for fake goods.

The first "alliance to fight counterfeits with big data" was initiated by Alibaba in Hangzhou, capital of eastern China's Zhejiang Province, the company said.

Among the first 20 members of the alliance are Chinese and international brands, including Huawei, LV, Swarovski, Dulux, Samsung, Sony and Bioderma.

Alibaba said the move would make the fight against counterfeiting more powerful and transparent.

The move was backed by police authorities in many provinces across China.

"Counterfeiting is rampant in the global market these days, and it's increasingly difficult to eradicate bogus goods using traditional offline means," said Jessie Zheng, Alibaba Group's chief platform governance officer.

She said that Alibaba Group was(Read More)