Roger Fingas
Apple's application to sell used iPhones in India is reportedly being fought by executives with leading vendors and manufacturers, who are worried that it could jeopardize local industry by opening the door to used imports as a whole.
A newly-established lobbying organization, the Mobile and Communications Council, recently sent a letter to the Indian government opposing Apple's application, according to Bloomberg. The Council's members include local firms Intex and Micromax, and South Korea's Samsung, which leads in Indian smartphone sales. Apple is a minor player in the country, holding less than a 2 percent marketshare.
Apple's application is currently in the middle of inter-ministerial discussion, said Asha Nangia, a director from the Indian government's Department of Electronics & Information Technology.
Used iPhones may be essential for Apple to make any sort of headway in India, since most phones in the country cost less than $150. Even Apple's latest "budget" device — the iPhone SE — starts at $399 back in the U.S. Until earlier this year, Apple was keeping the iPhone 4S and 5c on sale precisely to reach more Indian shoppers.
Opponents of Apple's plan point out that it could undermine Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Make in India" campaign, designed to encourage local manufacturing, since firms could simply flood the market with used imports. One seller said locals fear Apple's "snob value" will lead Indian consumers to choose the iPhone, even priced above $150, over locally-made handsets.
Critics have also invoked environmental concerns, suggesting that batteries and screens from used phones could exacerbate India's serious e-waste issue. Apple has promised to set up facilities to refurbish phones, but that might not matter if other firms are allowed to import used phones and can't or won't set up the same infrastructure.
Even if Apple can't sell used iPhones, it may be able to improve overall sales by establishing its first official outlets in the country. The company still needs approval, but is already said to be hunting for real estate, including a flagship space between 15,000 and 20,000 square feet.
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13 Comments
If anyone on this planet believes that Samsung is concerned about the environmental implications of used iPhones in India, come on down to Brooklyn...there's a great bridge here that I'd love to sell.
This is protectionism at its best. So the people of India are to be forced to purchase inferior phones, because Apple needs a permit to import used phones?
To the extent that products are not made in India that could be, it is rules like these that prevent it from happening.
Perish the thought of giving Indian consumers the choice of buying an iPhone: they might just choose it over their existing Indian-made phones!
Let me get this straight, 3 iKnockoff manufacturers are pissing their pants and making excuses about why iPhone batteries and screens are bad for the environment?
You would think these guys don't make phones or anything like an iPhone.
Micromax Intex Samsung
http://youtu.be/0WhuikFY1Pg
of course the worst copycat wannabe offender had to stick their nose in someone else's business to stay relevant. And why doesn't "Make in India" apply to Sammy?
They hear the storm coming is what's happening. I say Apple open retail stores, recycling plants and R&D facilities. Make India part of Apple. I don't believe Apple should be an "American company" no longer.
Samsung is such a fk'n scumbag of a company. And the morons in our legal system reinforced the thumbing of their nose at the rest of the world when they should have been bitch slapped into oblivion.