Apple’s making a big push in India, and it appears to be paying off. According to an article in The Times of India, Apple India’s revenue already rose by a factor of three last year, and analysts there expect the current brisk sales of iPhones to boost the company’s bottom line to over $1 billion in the current year.
While Apple does not disclose financials for the Indian sales unit, it does file with the Indian Registrar of Companies. In that filing, Apple reported a 431 percent rise in net profit this year, which the Times attributes to iPhone sales.
What’s even more interesting is that this meteoric rise in profitability came before Apple’s current aggressive marketing efforts in the region over the past six months, says The Times.
“The huge jump in revenues has made the company realise India’s potential. Apple is now chasing volumes and looking at the numbers game,” Manasi Yadav of IDC told the online news agency.
Shipments of iPhones have also risen threefold over the past six months, and analysts in the region expect this sales growth to continue for the remainder of this year, predicting a $1 billion revenue mark for the current fiscal year.
India hasn’t always been a high priority for Cupertino, with new products taking months to be available in the country. It wasn’t until late 2011 that Apple began getting products to the country closer to the global launch dates, and September 2012 until the company appointed two regional retail distributors and mounted a massive ad campaign.
Apple India also recently announced a buyback plan for iPhone 4, with apparently attractive re-sale prices for the two generation old models.
Sounds like Apple has gotten the message that India is a viable market.
Source: The India Times
Via: TUAW
Image: Technorati
