Is Samsung planning to stop selling phones under Rs 15,000 in India? The answer is no. Some media reports claimed that Samsung might stop selling phones under Rs 15,000. However, an industry insider has confirmed to MySmartPrice that the company isn’t exiting the sub-Rs 15,000 price segment.
Samsung is most likely to exit India’s feature or basic phone segment. A report in ET claimed that the South Korean major would gradually exit India’s low-budget basic phone segment. Citing people familiar with the matter, the report adds that Dixon is manufacturing the last batch of the devices for India by the end of this year. Talking to MySmartPrice, an industry insider without tipping an exact timeline said the company is exiting the entry-level segment by 2022 end or max early 2023.
This could mean that Samsung will cease to sell phones like Guru and Hero series feature phones that have been very popular in the country. Unfortunately, the company doesn’t list its feature phones on its main site.
Samsung exiting the feature phone segment will not only open the entry-level feature phone market for brands like itel and Nokia.
Samsung’s decision to exit the feature phone market in India could have multiple factors. Earlier this year, India’s overall feature phone market saw a steep decline of 39% year-on-year, as per a Counterpoint Research report.
It added that the decline in the feature phone market was due to several factors, including supply issues, high inventory levels, and even a drop in consumer demand. Talking about the leading feature phone brand, itel is leading the feature phone market with a majority share.
Talking about Samsung phones for around Rs 15,000, the company sells multiple phones in India, including Galaxy M12, Galaxy F41, Galaxy M31, Galaxy A13, Galaxy F22, Galaxy F12, and Galaxy M21 2021 Edition. Even on Amazon.in, several Samsung phones are listed as best-seller devices under Rs 15,000, like Samsung Galaxy M32 and Samsung Galaxy M12.
