India's commerce minister to meet with Apple to talk local manufacturing & offices
India's Commerce and Industry minister is reportedly meeting with Apple leadership in Davos, Switzerland in January to hash out further plans for manufacturing in India, including the possibility of setting up new corporate offices.
Local developers brushing up on Apple platforms.
"We are still talking to Apple. Negotiations are ongoing. If they agree, we will like them to set up offices in India as well. I am meeting Apple's top leadership in Davos in early January," Suresh Prabhu told India's Economic Times.
"When their offer came two-three years back and today, the situation has changed for them as well as for us. So, it is a good time to meet and discuss and finalize," he continued, adding that the government can "look into" and negotiate concessions the company is insisting on. Apple has been aiming to score a duty exemption on manufacturing and repair units, components, capital equipment, and consumables for smartphone manufacturing and service/repair for 15 years.
It has also been seeking breaks on customs duties, plus some level of exemption for local sourcing rules, which demand that single-brand retailers get 30 percent of their components from India.
It's uncertain whether any sort of breakthrough might happen in Davos, as both Apple and the Indian government have seemingly been reluctant to drop demands. The latter party has previously said that it won't give Apple any concessions unavailble to other businesses.
Apple is in a tough bargaining position, as while the Indian government is keen to boost local manufacturing and create jobs, the company is a minor player in the local smartphone market with a share of just 1 percent. iPhones are vastly more expensive than most Indians can afford, which has allowed rivals like OnePlus and Samsung to swoop in.
Apple has refused to build new low- or mid-tier phones for markets like India, instead choosing to sell older models at lower prices. In fact what iPhone assembly does take place in the country is for models like the iPhone 6s, hardware treated as outdated in most parts of the world.
Local developers brushing up on Apple platforms.
"We are still talking to Apple. Negotiations are ongoing. If they agree, we will like them to set up offices in India as well. I am meeting Apple's top leadership in Davos in early January," Suresh Prabhu told India's Economic Times.
"When their offer came two-three years back and today, the situation has changed for them as well as for us. So, it is a good time to meet and discuss and finalize," he continued, adding that the government can "look into" and negotiate concessions the company is insisting on. Apple has been aiming to score a duty exemption on manufacturing and repair units, components, capital equipment, and consumables for smartphone manufacturing and service/repair for 15 years.
It has also been seeking breaks on customs duties, plus some level of exemption for local sourcing rules, which demand that single-brand retailers get 30 percent of their components from India.
It's uncertain whether any sort of breakthrough might happen in Davos, as both Apple and the Indian government have seemingly been reluctant to drop demands. The latter party has previously said that it won't give Apple any concessions unavailble to other businesses.
Apple is in a tough bargaining position, as while the Indian government is keen to boost local manufacturing and create jobs, the company is a minor player in the local smartphone market with a share of just 1 percent. iPhones are vastly more expensive than most Indians can afford, which has allowed rivals like OnePlus and Samsung to swoop in.
Apple has refused to build new low- or mid-tier phones for markets like India, instead choosing to sell older models at lower prices. In fact what iPhone assembly does take place in the country is for models like the iPhone 6s, hardware treated as outdated in most parts of the world.
Comments
If the Majority of people in India are doing calls and texts only, then they dont need a smartphone, and may as well have a feature phone, or feature phone with more advanced features.
Except in China where it uses HydrogenOS
indeed most of them are using cheaper smartphones but imagine what it would mean for apple to tap on the segment using Samsung galaxy high end end & pixel phones , I fail to understand why most people perceive INDIA as only a poor country as if no one can afford anything worthwhile in india ? wherein anyone in the USA can buy the latest iPhone XS for example for 999 USD and the “poor Indians” buying that phone have to shell out approx 1426 USD equivalent in INR , so if the Americans cry hoarse over apple charging too much imagine what people in india should say