Sony officially exits Indian smartphone market due to stiff competition

As far as Counterpoint Research is concerned, Sony’s market share in India was reduced to as low as 0.01% in the first quarter of 2019. Therefore, it can be said that Sony was to be seen nowhere in India from the last couple of years. Having said that, Sony also tells that they would still monitor conditions in the country. And they would also check the feasibility of business in India if things get better.

In a statement, Sony Mobile said that “Our focus markets are Japan, Europe, Hong Kong and Taiwan to drive profitability and future prospects in the 5G era,”. Also, 5G is still some time away as far as Indian markets are concerned so Sony does not look to launch 5G smartphones in the country.

Adding to the statement further, Sony announced that “We have ceased sales in Central and South America, the Middle East, South Asia, Oceania, etc. in FY 18,” For those who are reading this from a Sony smartphone, you need not worry about Sony’s exit from India for the time being. Because the company has announced that “continue its customer support operations including after sales support and software updates for existing customers in India”

Now, experts believe that Sony did the right thing by exiting the increasingly-tight smartphone market in India. A researcher from Counterpoint Research believes that Sony took the correct step of focusing on the high average selling price markets such as Japan. Currently, the Indian smartphone market is dominated by the likes of Xiaomi, Realme, Vivo, and Oppo in the mid-range segment.